Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 11-30-18

Dear Reader,

Congratulations to Stacey Somppi, one of the Honorable Mention recipients in the 2018 Write a DearReader Contest. Stacey reminds us there are angels everywhere, if we are looking, especially on the trail.

In 2017, our son thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail, Georgia to Maine, 1850 miles. This year he is tackling the Pacific Crest Trail, Mexico to Canada, 2650 miles. While I love the pictures he sends of impressive vistas, and we appreciate learning about the gear he uses, I am a sucker for the stories about Trail Angels.

Trail Angels are everyday folks along the way who are kind to hikers, doing small good deeds to make their hikes easier. Last year I could not get enough of these stories.

He told us about the grocery store manager who saw our son restocking hiking supplies at his store about two miles from the trail. He came out of his office to tell our son that he'd give him a lift back to the trailhead. The store runs a daily bus, but that wouldn't be until the afternoon so the manager volunteered.

Imagine our son's surprise at coming upon a cold stream stocked with beer and a sign indicating that the hikers should help themselves. He also encountered impromptu cookouts set up for hikers, often hosted by previous years' hikers or youth groups.

One retired woman spends her days giving rides to hikers from various trailheads into nearby towns and back to the trail. She follows the flow of hikers along the trail so some lucky folks encounter her more than once. She is the star of many selfies.

The manager of one hiker hostel has a box of scrubs for hikers to wear as they do their laundry, allowing them to wash everything at once. Our son said he and the patrons at the local diner looked like a bunch of interns.

This year on the other side of the country, angels also exist. The first was the couple and their many friends who graciously pick up hikers at the San Diego airport, allow them to camp in their yard, feed them dinner and breakfast, then provide rides to the trailhead one-and-a-half hours to the south where the PCT starts. And they won't accept any payment.

Our son's landlord in New Mexico is a Trail Angel in absentia, forwarding General Delivery packages of replacement shoes and supplies to him along the way.

Once we get the chance to visit with our son at the end of this summer's hike, I know I will have new stories to add to this collection.

For the most part, these Trail Angels are usually anonymous benefactors who fill very specific needs for hikers in their area. These are not random acts of kindness, but targeted acts of generosity.

We don't have to travel to iconic national trails to become Trail Angels. We can each provide specific help to those we meet daily on our own thru-hikes of life.

Stacey Somppi
Honorable Mention
Write a DearReader Contest 2018

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11-29-18

Dear Reader,

Sometimes life gets in the way of writing, but not this year for Debbie Kosinski, one of the Honorable Mention writers in this year's Write a DearReader Contest.

I wrote my first novel around the time I graduated from high school. A novella, really. I followed that with another novel in college, and a third written during graduate school. I specify that I wrote the novels, pen-to-paper, free-flowing ideas. I didn't edit, I didn't rewrite. I most certainly never attempted to even think about trying to get anything published. I was way too busy, what with school, extra-curricular activities, friends and summer jobs. I would have plenty of time for my novel once I was finished with school. Right? There was never a question in my mind. I just assumed. Of course I would write and publish a novel once all my schooling was done.

But it didn't work out that way. Once I got my degree, I immediately started a super-intense internship. Then it was my first "real" job. I was working all the time, and when I wasn't working, I was dating or out with friends. The little time I was home and not sleeping, I was too exhausted to write. But that was okay, once I was settled, once my career took off, once I was married with kids, I could work part-time and then I would have plenty of time to write. Right?

Okay, so now all you working moms out there can stop laughing at me. Because that's where I am now. I am a working mom, vice president of the PTA, chauffeur, house-cleaner and cook extraordinaire. Oh yes, I do it all. You know what I don't do? Write.

I cringe when I hear the phrase "Writers write." Everyone's busy, just make the time. If you really want to write, you will find the time. But I can't and I don't. I am too tired. I should write at six am, after my shower and before I have to wake the kids for school. But I have to make and pack school lunches, feed the cats and walk the dog. I should write after the kids go to sleep, but after I check homework and clean up after dinner, I fall asleep on the couch in front of the television.

I don't even know what happened to all the great ideas I used to have. It's like my tired, overworked brain has shut down on me, my ideas have dried up, and I worry that I will never be inspired to write again.

That can't be true, can it? It has been over ten years since I last scribbled my novel in a college-lined notebook. But I still hold on to my dream of someday being a published author. Once the kids go off to college, once I can retire from the work-a-day world, then I'll have plenty of time to write. Right? And then, albeit thirty or so years later then I once imagined, I hope, I really, really hope my ideas and my energy will come flooding back, and I will finally complete my novel.

Debbie Kosinski
Honorable Mention
Write a DearReader Contest 2018

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

* Congratulations to the winners of Odd(ly) Enough by Guest Author Carolanne Miljavac: Margie R., Pat H., Marlys F., Susan G. and Shari B.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11-28-18

Dear Reader,

Today I'm sharing another Honorable Mention story from this year's Write a DearReader Contest. Congratulations to Susan Johnson. Her story will touch your heart.

Shadows

I saw you again today, a quick flash, out of the corner of my eye. When I turned, you were gone, as I knew you would be. With a sigh, I allowed the sadness to creep in until I could fling it away, the wispy web clinging to the darker corners of my mind. How long must I endure these ephemeral flashes of shadow? After all, you have been gone six months now. These sightings are becoming less frequent at least. That makes me feel guilty somehow. As if my moving on diminishes the important place you once filled in my life.

I didn't understand just what you meant to me until the day of your passing. You had become almost a fixture in the household, a sofa or a lamp, but of flesh and blood. We grow so used to our loved ones being there that we don't pay as much attention to them as we should. Until one day you find yourself missing a piece of your heart.

That March day was surreal. As the family gathered on that final day, you were so quiet. I sensed fear but also a deep tiredness in you. It was time to cross that bridge. I hope you were ready. I certainly wasn't. After you were given the initial sedative, we were given time alone to say our goodbyes. There were no dry eyes in that room. When it came time for that last injection I wanted to be sure to get a last look at you. Stroking your side, I felt a shudder and then nothing more. I looked into your eyes until I felt you were gone.

Returning home without you was hard. We stopped for lunch first. Not just because we were hungry but also to distract from what we were all feeling. I'm certain other patrons could sense something was amiss. Surely they could see the pain in our eyes.

That first day was tough. Dad took care of your things, as I could not bear to look at them. They sit, still, in the garage. We had removed them from our everyday view but could not take that next step of either donating or tossing away.

The passing of the days has lessened the heartache. At first, I would see you in your usual places, always out of the corner of my eye. I wasn't the only one. The rest of the family sensed you too: the sound of your footsteps moving across the hardwood floors, the quick glimpses of your small form. Remember how I used to turn on the light to the bedroom as I made my way though it to the bathroom so I wouldn't accidentally step on you? In your old age, your hearing wasn't as good as it used to be so I couldn't count on you to move out of my way. For many weeks, I still had the urge to turn on that light and call out your name.

I thought I was doing pretty well until a week or so later I was cleaning out the bedroom wastebasket and found your hair clippings. A bit of madness took me as I caressed that softness to my cheek. Maybe I should keep some of it, I thought. No, that's a bit too weird. Besides, it wasn't the beautiful hair you once had. These were the clippings of the matted clumps your silky hair had become. You were not much for grooming those last few years. So, out they went.

Today, as I look at the photos we took of you over the years I recall those first few weeks when you earned your name by leaving behind the legs of the poor crickets that dared enter our home.

You took a piece of my heart with you, Cricket, but left a piece of yours with me.

Susan Johnson
Honorable Mention
Write a DearReader Contest 2018

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11/27/18

Dear Reader,

Today's guest author is Rachel Marie Martin. Let me tell you a little bit about her...

Having pulled herself up from poverty to being named one of Inc. magazine's top 40 entrepreneurs, Rachel has been writing Finding Joy full time for several years and writing online for over a decade. She's always had a passion for a daring, adventure-filled life and is often requested to speak and motivate others with her vivacious energy, and deep belief that life is a gift. Rachel is also a partner in Blogging Concentrated, the world's largest training and development company for bloggers, vloggers, and podcasters. She travels worldwide teaching marketing, voice, messaging, social media strategy and more. Rachel is a single mom of seven and lives in Tennessee.

In Rachel's newest book The Brave Art of Motherhood, she challenges her readers to change their today, so that their tomorrow is different. In its first month BookAuthority.org listed it as the best Motherhood Book of 2018, Amazon ranked it a #1 Best Seller and the Today Show featured Rachel and her story.

Rachel's guest column may be a personal note to mothers, but really it's a powerful reminder for all of us. Please welcome Rachel Marie Martin...

The Tomorrow Today Dare

I lived a life for many years waiting for tomorrow.

Tomorrow I'll start running.

Tomorrow I'll call that friend.

Tomorrow I'll read that book.

Tomorrow I'll tackle that room.

Tomorrow I'll speak up.

Tomorrow I'll try out for that part.

Tomorrow I'll plan that trip.

Tomorrow I'll take time for me.

Tomorrow, when the kids are grown, is really what I was telling myself.

Tomorrow, when the kids are grown, I'll really take time for myself because only then do I think I'm worth taking the time. Tomorrow when all the things that need to get fixed will I do all the things that need me to be brave. That's also what I was really telling myself. It's not easy to admit those lost myself kind of thoughts. We tuck them behind guilt and yet, when asked, those are the moments where the tears well up in one's eyes.

Living for tomorrow means that you think you will have many tomorrows.

Here's the real truth:

It means, at some level, you believe your life is invincible.

Humbling, isn't it? I so quickly forget that truth until those moments where it's smack in my face. Maybe it's easier to live without that urgency. Maybe we get caught up in the frenzy of life.

What, just what happens, if you stop with the excuse of the perpetual tomorrow and you start living today? What will you teach your kids then? You won't teach them that a mom gives up on her dreams and her passions and gets burnt out. You will teach them that it is just as noble and just as wise to not forget you.

Remember when you were young? The dreams, the possibilities, the excitement of when you were grown?

Don't lose that. This is your now.

Sometimes we just get so busy and so bogged down by life that all of that seems foolish, unwise and if there isn't the time. Trust me.

You are worth the time.

I know you have dreams. I also know you have dishes. I know you have hopes. I also know you have kids who either rebel or throw up or don't want the shirt with the lion on front and you are late and don't want to deal with changing it or well, you get the picture. You are a mom.

But, dear sister, just because you are a mom does not mean that you get a pass on yourself.

You don't get to quit taking care of you.

You don't get to wait until tomorrow to find your spark again.

You get now.

Sometimes it will mean tough stuff. It means looking at all the excuses that you have built and deciding to go the other way. It might mean giving up something to gain something better.

But you are worth your tomorrow today.

You are worth living with vibrancy and excitement.

Don't worry. It's not going mean that you deny being a mom, buy a plane ticket and fly to Europe. It simply means that you will remember you with the same tenacity that you remember your kids. I bet your kids doctor's appointments are up to date and you make sure they eat well and have a good education. That goes for you too.

Not tomorrow.

Today.

So I challenge you, wait, I dare you--to do one thing today that is about you finding you, finding joy or just makes you happy. I dare you to start living today like it was your tomorrow. No excuses, no putting you last, no more waiting.

You see, if you burn out, what good are you to everyone around you who needs you?

Ponder that.

Live today doing everything you put off for tomorrow.

I dare you.

-- Rachel Martin
[email protected]

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* Congratulations to the winners of Strangers In Budapest by Guest Author Jessica Keener: Carol P., Dorie F., Nancy R., Janet T., and Pat H.

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11-26-18

Dear Reader,

Debbie Williams is a fun-loving, brave, adventurous woman and I'm so glad she entered this year's Write a DearReader Contest. Get ready to have some fun. You'll enjoy the read.

My husband retired on Friday; a week later we launched ourselves into retirement when we bought a 40' motor coach. We already live in Florida (where most retirees dream of moving to) but we are both ready for a change of scenery--but we can't agree on where our ideal retirement home might be. After 36 years together, we are not totally on the same page about where we want to be in the future! Who knew we'd look at each other and say "You want to live where?" Buying a house on wheels seems like a good compromise for now.

This is the biggest leap of faith I've done in years, so far out of my comfort zone I'm about to break out in hives. After the initial exhilaration wore off, I am fretting. I don't know if I will gain or lose a sense of community as we travel around the country? Will our kids miss us? Would anyone care if I do--or don't do--a travel blog? How will extended time together in a RV be for us? It's a lot of money and it won't appreciate like buying real estate. Our kids think we've lost our minds and our friends say it's something they only dream of doing. I never aspired to be a bus driver or drive a big rig, and to be honest I was always annoyed if I got stuck behind one of the big RV's plodding along the highway towing their little car along, like a bug stuck to the back of it! And now that's going to be ME?!

I have to learn how to drive this behemoth because the only thing crazier than buying it is buying it and not being able to drive it. My sweetie says he will need a co-pilot and he didn't mean just in life, but behind the wheel, too. All the times we've flown, I've just glanced to the left for a quick peek into the cockpit and taken a seat, confident the pilot will get me to my destination safely. Now, I have my own "cockpit" to master, an all-day class to learn the various systems when we pick it up next week, plus a safe driver class. (I think we are both secretly scared of driving it!) I am looking forward to making lunch, doing laundry and watching TV...all while we motor along down the highway. My husband with no 9-5 job now has spent hours researching campgrounds and planning future trips. Me, I just want to close the door on our house, jump in the RV and take a left at the panhandle and see where we end up!

If you see a 40' bus plodding along on the interstate, with a spry retiree with faded auburn hair driving (maybe eating a grilled cheese), and a little dachshund in the window, give it plenty of room!

Debbie Williams
Honorable Mention
Write a DearReader Contest 2018

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11-23-18

Dear Reader,

Turkey, turkey, gobble, gobble--if your Thanksgiving dinner guests don't gobble down all of your turkey, I have the perfect recipe for your leftovers. It's become a tradition, the Friday after Thanksgiving is my day to make turkey pies.

My quick and easy recipe for Leftover Turkey Pies.

Line a pie pan with ready-made crust (or make it from scratch), and fill it two-thirds of the way with cut-up leftover turkey. Dice a fresh onion, add vegetables (a package of frozen, or leftover fresh veggies from the relish tray). Pour any leftover gravy on top. If Uncle Fred polished off the gravy, open a can of turkey or chicken gravy. I prefer chicken because it has more flavor. Season with pepper. Add top crust.

Bake in a 400 degree oven until golden brown. You've got the perfect leftover turkey pie. It's as simple as that.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11-22-18

Dear Reader,

Today my family and friends are gathering at my home for Thanksgiving dinner. It's always the year's big ta-do! dinner. Bigger than Christmas dinner. The menu never changes, it's tradition: turkey, crock pot dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potato casserole, Skunk beans, shrimp salad, deviled eggs, green beans jazzed with tomato, fresh cranberries, coleslaw and pies, and more pies, all homemade including the crusts.

Paul, James and Hadley, three of my grandchildren who live close by, will help me make the pies the day before Thanksgiving. Actually 12-year-old Paul, has been baking with me since he was three years old, so he can make the pies himself now, including the crusts.

Family and friends gathered together, a tradition of favorite foods, and memories that will last a lifetime.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11-21-18

Dear Reader,

Featuring today's column for the Thanksgiving holiday, has become a tradition. It's the story of one of those unforgettable, life-changing moments, and every year when I set the table for holiday dinners I think of him...

It was obvious he didn't want to be in my kitchen. He had been kicked out of every public and private school and homeschooling was a last resort for his parents. I'm sure his folks were jumping for joy, and would have gladly paid double the price when they saw my announcement: 6-Week Cooking Class for Homeschoolers, because it would give them a three-hour break during the day.

Ryan was tough looking, the kind of kid that would make you cross over to the other side of the street if you were out for a leisurely stroll. Ragged hair that always looked like it needed to be washed, baggy clothes and big oversized, steel-toed, curb-stomping boots. In his mind, I'm sure he was lookin' cool.

Eight, fifth grade students enrolled in my class, including Ryan. On our first day, when we did introductions, I asked each kid to tell me what they hoped to learn. Tough kid's response, "My parents made me come here, sounds stupid to me."

Okay, I could work with that. Maybe?

But Ryan would never give me an inch--it would have been giving in to the establishment to actually enjoy himself, even when he was eating a cream puff. "Well, what do you think? Do you like them?" I was hoping the fluffy white filling might force one crummy smile from him, but no...he was one tough cookie. Nevertheless, I genuinely liked the kid. I respected his pigheadedness. It reminded me of myself when I was his age.

Each student had kitchen assignments, but I didn't press Ryan to do much of anything, except I did enforce a "No Smoking" rule during the three hour class period. But I'd still catch him smoking outside when we'd take a break. I spoke to his parents about it, but they just shrugged their shoulders: "What can you do?"

Ryan wasn't disrupting the class and the other kids accepted his behavior for what it was--so I figured no real harm done. Tough boy would try to follow a recipe every now and then, but he moved so slowly--to emphasize his disgust in being there--that by the time he'd get some cookie batter mixed up we were out of time.

The finale of the six week cooking class was to prepare a holiday buffet for the kids' parents. Thanksgiving was only a couple of weeks away, so we decided to do a half-Thanksgiving, half-Christmas theme with the table decorations. All of the kids showed up for class early on the big day, even Ryan, which surprised me, because I wasn't sure he was going to show up at all, so I hadn't given him an assignment.

"Here, these are for the table," Ryan said, his eyes looking away from me, "I made them last night." And he handed me two wooden snowmen, two Christmas trees and a Pilgrim and Indian.

I was stunned, they were adorable. He'd hand carved and painted them, on all sides, so no matter where they sat on the buffet table you'd be able to see the detail of his work. You never know about people. I thought I was going to cry, but I could tell he didn't want me to make too big of a deal about it. His parents were as shocked as I'd been, when I pointed out what their son had made.

Two wooden Christmas trees, two snowmen, and an Indian and Pilgrim, sit on the shelf of my china closet, but every year on Thanksgiving and Christmas, I take them down, and put them in the center of my table and of course, I retell the story of the boy who made them for me.

*If you'd like to see a photo of my "treasures" click here.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11-20-18

Dear Reader,

Meet Jimmy Brandmeier "the Dad" in a beautiful, wacky family of three daughters, Paula his wife of twenty-five years (ageless), two doves, a couple of goldfish, and a cat named Squeakers. Though their loving yellow lab, Satchmo, went to doggy heaven, his doggy hair will always be with them.

Apart from family, Brandmeier is a Telly Award winning composer/producer. He's worked directly with celebrity artists ranging from Eric Clapton, Carole King, Avril Lavigne and Joss Stone, to Wynonna Judd, Jason Mraz and Dave Matthews among others; written jingles for brands from Mazda to Mattel. Brandmeier is a jazz flutist who's played everywhere from town halls to Carnegie Hall and a teacher, passionate about inspiring students to create a life of abundance and fulfillment. He has a deep-seated dedication to help people transcend inner and outer obstacles and understand the point of life, so they may live fulfilled and happy lives--which at its core, is the essence of his book Be Who You Are, A Song For My Children.

There are three copies of Be Who You Are, A Song For My Children waiting for three lucky book club readers. Jimmy would love to hear from you and when you email you'll automatically be entered in the drawing for a copy of his book.

Email: [email protected]

Please welcome author Jimmy Brandmeier...

LARRY DALEY: 'Why did you become a pilot?'

AMELIA EARHART: 'Honestly, Mr. Daley? For the fun of it. Why else would anyone do anything?'

There's sage wisdom in that scene from the movie Night at the Museum. I dare you to face it--dare you to admit it--dare you to live it!

Life should be fun!

Imagine that!

The average child laughs 400 times per day; the average adult laughs 15 times per day. What the heck happened to the other 385 laughs!?

We quit having fun, that's what!

And what can be more fun than creating a life vision that frees you from the bondage of boredom? Imagine brushing off the dead dust of a life-sucking 'rut'-tine and feeling alive again, liberated from the quicksand of money problems, rocky relationships, career confusion, and bad moods.

Imagine a vision that saves you from a flatline, fitting-in, walking dead, just existing, just showing up, just getting by, escaping through TV and food and booze and buying stuff you can't afford, living from check to check, dying in bits and pieces, and going through the same crap, different day after day after same-dull-day, all over and over and over again, kind of so-called life.

Yuck!

IMAGINE!!

Imagine doing what you love to do.

Imagine doing what you want to do.

Imagine having fun doing what you really love and want to do! Life is not a prison sentence to be endured; it's a gift to be opened--a hands-in-the-air freedom ride to the promised land of your own spirit, forever calling you home.

God is happiest when his children are at play.

So play!

Play!

Play!

I dare you!

I dare you to break out of your comfort zone, bust through limiting beliefs, and expand your self-concept to create a "new normal," new vision, and a new life.

I dare you to expand the reach of your questions by freeing the unlimited reach of your self-worth.

I dare you to ASK!
And ask BIG!
Expect miracles!
And expect BIG!
Laugh!
And laugh BIG!

I dare you to take internal command of your compass and design your own life. To imagine your wish fulfilled--make it part of your routine--feel it as you're falling asleep--step into it as you're waking up! I dare you to throw away plan B, and commit, commit, commit to plan A--to turn your invisible wishes into your visible life--to start with the end in mind and work, and work, and work your butt off.

Just imagine!

I dare you!

-- Jimmy Brandmeier

Email Jimmy for a chance to win a copy of his new book, Be Who You Are, A Song For My Children.

Click here to hear the song that inspired the book.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 11-19-18

Dear Reader,

I love to exchange recipes. A few years ago, Tom, my manicurist, was raving about my Skunk Beans recipe and when I asked him if he had a recipe for sweet potatoes, he assured me this one is a winner. He was right. It's a regular holiday recipe in my house.

Because my oven is busy all day on Thanksgiving, I bake the sweet potatoes the day before and then store them in the fridge. On Thanksgiving I mash them, and heat them in the microwave, just until hot. I find the ingredients will not adhere and mix as well if the potatoes are cold.

TOM'S SWEET POTATOES

4 cups mashed sweet potatoes (fresh baked, not canned)
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 sticks butter
1 cup milk

Mix the above ingredients together and bake @ 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Topping:
3/4 cup crushed cornflakes
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup ground pecans

Mix topping ingredients together and crumble over top and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Use 13 x 9 pan or dish. To double topping--double everything except the butter.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

 Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE BOOK OF EMMA REYES: A MEMOIR, by Emma Reyes. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.