Remembering women’s place in ‘her story’

“Well-behaved women rarely make history.” That was a car bumper sticker I saw in 2025. It has stuck in my mind ever since.

This spring I attended two local events that embraced this mantra. 

The first was a free daytime performance, “Channeling Rachel Carson,” sponsored by the Lincoln COA at Lincoln’s Bemis Hall. Diane Edgecomb, an award-winning author and storyteller, gave a truly inspiring performance about the courageous female scientist and writer Rachel Carson. In challenging pesticides and the entire petrochemical industry, she became the founding spirit of the environmental movement, which led to the creation of Earth Day. Her writings, “Silent Spring,” “The Edge of the Sea,” and “The Sea Around Us,” placed her as the foremost nature writer of her time.

Our beautifully restored Wright Tavern hosted my second event — a delightfully entertaining Sunday afternoon tea featuring Amy Cole, an historic interpreter speaking on the history and evolution of tea and tearooms and its spread from China to Britain to Acton. From Amy’s engaging “tea tales,” l learned Acton women were banned from attending all restaurants and taverns unless accompanied by a male, so they created their own “home” tearooms. These became places for women to socialize unchaperoned and organize into political movements like suffragism. (Bravo for them!) 

A sumptuous spread of delicious tea sandwiches, vegetable salad, delicate desserts, wines, lemonade, fresh fruit, and teas complemented Amy’s talk. 

So enjoyable was the afternoon that I attended a repeat a few weeks later.

I had made a sign — “Well-behaved women rarely make history” — for the tea. 

As I printed out “history,” I suddenly saw it’s not just “his story,” but all along it’s been also “her story.” Amen. (I mean awomen!)

Mari Weinberg

Hillside Avenue