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So here we are in the month of December, and tomorrow being the feast of St. Nicholas, I was reminiscing about what this day meant to me growing up. Eastern Europeans and their ancestors celebrate this saint’s feast day in a variety of ways. (I read a newsclip about a parade in the Czech Republic…
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Well, it’s been an interesting end of 2021 and a new beginning in a fun year word to say, 2022. The day after Christmas, my life took a left turn. I fell and broke my arm. In my bathroom. Doing nothing other than walking across the floor to grab something. (honestly, I was going too…
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On the #KidLitChat on Bluesky this past Tuesday, we were challenged to use one word to describe our life in 2026. My word was ‘journey’. My journey is multitiered. I am beginning my final year of full time employment, with an anticipated retirement date in July. I have worked in one capacity or another since…
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As these warm summer days and evening sunlight will soon end, I won’t be sitting outside writing for much longer. I thought I’d take inventory before I’m back to writing indoors. Some things I did this summer: I listened to a free series of writing webinars called Children’s Book Mastery recently, and was pleasantly surprised…
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It’s snowing lightly in Toledo, enough to have canceled our plans, and so I hunkered down in the cold to write. I finished a poem I’m entering in a Valentine writing contest next week. It came easy at first, earlier in the week, then a trickle of inspiration here and there, and then hard to…
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In her annual 12 Days of Christmas for Writers, author Julie Hedlund asks us to celebrate our surprises and successes as we reflect on the past year. I thought about these words as the holidays came to an end and the new year loomed. Some of my successes and surprises have intersected and some have…
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Day One: Vacationing in November is something new for me. Usually, I’m up to my ears in holiday to-do lists, trips to the park or the gym, and in years past, volleyball practices, games, and tournaments with my younger daughter. Not this year- so we took a week long trip out west. I have always…
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I am into making fun costumes for Hallowe’en, not the run-of-the mill type, but costumes that make people think. This year, I took a green shift dress, draped it with leaf-themed fabric, sewed silk leaves onto the shoulders, and made a leaf-covered headdress. To elaborate, my costumes each year are either a play on words…
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margaret.r.zotkiewicz 