by Keri Rozansky | Jun 15, 2025 | Blog
Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers and father figures! Take a few minutes today to call him, text him, or go visit him if you can. My dad usually escapes to his “happy place” in Northern Michigan, but I make sure to call and text. It makes his day.
No matter what your father’s parenting style may have been during your formative years, most dads still love their children. When you were a child saying “that’s not fair!” or “I hate you for this!” he was bearing through it, possibly with a little sadness for your attitude but also holding out to teach you a lesson. Dads show love in the sneakiest ways, too. You might not even really realize it until you look back on your time with him. Hugs, kisses, and bedtime stories may not have been his thing – or he was hardworking man who worked third shifts for 25 years to support the family. But he showed it in other ways:
– He came to your school to give presentations about his job to your class – and as he walked through the halls to leave, got pulled into a dozen more classrooms to speak to those children as well
– He took you to softball practice and cheered you on at every practice and game
– He was the coach for your floor hockey team
– He came to swim meets, football games, and theater productions
– He never stopped supporting you, no matter what
As you grew older and your life changed, so did his. When you graduated from college, he was there. When you got married and moved out of state to start a new life with your new spouse, he said goodbye – then probably went somewhere to shed a few tears. When you called to tell him you were having a baby, he was thrilled, and went straight to his workshop to make “Baby’s First Putter” in an effort to have the child grow up to play the sport he loved.
Your dad may have done some of this, none of this, or all of this, but he never stopped being your dad. The great ones have never stopped loving you. Dads come in all forms these days: biological fathers, stepfathers, adoptive fathers, even uncles, cousins, or grandfathers who stepped in when no other father figure was around. He may have been an involved dad like the one described above, or a dad who was busy grinding and working hard to support the family. If your dad is no longer with you, he is still there in spirit.
So, if you love and appreciate your father, make sure he knows today.
What are some memories you have with your dad? Happy, sad, or in between. Let’s talk on Facebook!https://www.facebook.com/KeriRozanskyAuthor
by Keri Rozansky | Jun 11, 2025 | Blog
Last month, my son graduated high school, this month, my nephew did. The ceremony was last Friday, and it was a good one. It took place at the same venue where my high school graduation was held 26 years ago! That doesn’t particularly matter I don’t think, but it is nice to know the facility is still being used for that by the area school districts.
There were several differences between my son’s graduation and my nephew’s. First, there was a difference of about 286 kids graduating. My son’s small Catholic high school had a graduating class of about 125, and my nephew’s public school graduated over 400 students!
It was a nice, but long ceremony. It ran nearly 30 minutes over its scheduled time, and we were all exhausted and ready to go home. But first – ice cream! We stopped in at a local DQ and between sitting and eating and standing outside to talk after the store closed and kicked us out, we didn’t make our way back home until nearly midnight, and didn’t arrive home until shortly before 1:30 a.m. Although the graduation should have been the highlight of the night, it was agreed by all that ice cream was the actual highlight.
Do you remember graduation? Was the highlight of the day or night the ceremony or the celebration afterward? Let’s talk on Facebook!
by Keri Rozansky | Jun 4, 2025 | Blog
Based on a true story. There are dozens if not hundreds of movies made that have been based on a true story. But what does that mean? “Based” means the creators used some or all of the source material to create and present their story. Sadly, sometimes it means they bought the rights to the source material’s name and characters, then do whatever they want, often leaving audiences who loved the source material angry and upset.
But what about basing your characters on real people? If they’re celebrities or other well-know people, you’ll want to make sure you’re not disparaging them – that’s a lawsuit waiting to happen! But you can often get away with basing something on friends, family, or acquaintances a little easier. Me personally, I try to talk to those people to get their okay, but sometimes I just have to roll with it and let them know later. Of course, I let them read their character profile and some sections of the story to get their approval, especially when I’m turning them into something they’re not, like a lawyer I based off of a friend who has never been near a courtroom, or an honest-to-the-bone family member into a blackmailing snitch constantly trying to leverage their information to get what they want.
Sometimes, I even write stories about people specifically for them, for their entertainment. Currently, a short story I’m working on about a friend is turning into something longer. Depending on how long it gets, I’ll have to ask their permission to publish it as a novella or novel. Currently, my information is based on some discussions we’ve had and a basic physical description of him and elements of his personality. My imagination has taken it from there. I’ve been keeping him informed of the progress and some major plot points, and he’s loving it so far.
But keep in mind that if you want to write this way yourself, you should get the permission beforehand. Even if the saying is it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, once something is in print, there’s no going back. Even if it’s available for only a short time, or in a single medium, there’s still enough opportunity for someone to find it and save it.
What is your experience with creating stories and characters? Have you purposefully or accidentally based it on something you know (“write what you know!” after all) that others may not wish to have shared publicly? How did you fix it?
Let’s talk on Facebook!
by Keri Rozansky | May 28, 2025 | Blog
This year was a year of “lasts.” Last first day of school, last school-wide Mass, last last day of school, and, though I didn’t want to think about it until it happened, my last Parent Ambassadors event. I’ve made friends with these people, and I’ll likely not see them much, if at all, ever again. My son has graduated, and we don’t have anymore kids, let alone boys, to take his place at his school. That means I’ll forever be an Alumni Mom, and not likely ever a Current Student Mom. Of course, things could change. But for now, it’s a last.
There’s always an end-of-the-year wrap up gathering at a local restaurant. It’s casual – you can come in jeans and a t-shirt if you like, but the time is shortly after typical work hours end, and some come in business casual. It’s a time for us to connect as parents and friends, without the formality of being “on” to welcome new parents and students into the fold that is the top Catholic high school in our state.
It was a great time. Food, drinks, and just talking with each other. Another mom there also had a senior who graduated this year, and she said to pass along her congratulations for the honor medal my son won for journalism.
As any good gathering does, it lasted well past its “end time” – 2 hours is never enough when hanging out with this crew. The surprise of the night came at the end, however, when the admissions director presented each of us with a gift for our work this year. I opened it when I got home to find four glass pilsners with the school logo beautifully etched on each.
There are other things in life we don’t necessarily recognize as a last. Several of these “lasts” with my son’s school mean lifelong memories that will mean they are never truly last. What was the end of your schooling or another anticipated end? How did you feel? Was it truly an “end” or have you kept those connections through the years? Let’s talk on Facebook!
by Keri Rozansky | May 21, 2025 | Blog
He did it! My son graduated high school last night! After years of hard work, then months of anticipatory events like the Senior-Alumni lunch to Baccalaureate Mass and finally graduation! The ceremony was meant to take place at the school football field, but the cold and rain moved it indoors to a nearby church. Nothing else changed, it started at the same time and arrival times were the same, but it was much more comfortable inside the church than it ever would have been if the outdoor ceremony went as planned.
My parents and my sister-in-law and nephew also attended, too, so he had plenty of family support than he did when we lived in Arizona, away from most of our family. It was a normal ceremony – speeches by the valedictorians and salutatorian, some programming by the faculty and staff, the calling of names and receiving of diploma covers. After that, there was a presentation of academic medals – and he earned one for his work in the broadcast journalism class he’s taken the last three years. It was a nice surprise and a great feeling for him (and for us) that he was specially awarded for such hard work.
After the ceremony, we met for pictures and for him to talk to the family that came and take pictures. Between all the cameras we probably have hundreds of pictures. When family left, we went home, changed, and went out for a celebratory dinner at one of his favorite restaurants.
I could go on and on talking about every single moment of the evening, but I won’t. If you’ve been following my blog at all this school year, you know this is the ultimate event.
Do you remember your high school or college graduation? What’s your fondest memory of your time in school? Let’s talk on Facebook!
