St. John Cantius (June 23, 1390 to Dec. 24, 1473)

Film as Literature was the one class I looked forward to during my freshman year in college. "Stagecoach," "Carnal Knowledge," "Bullitt," "Cabaret," "Shampoo," and "Don't Look Now." The list goes on.
My Monday morning routine was as follows: U.S. History to 1877 from 8 to 9 a.m., go home and take a nap until 1 p.m., then go back to the college to watch a film at 2 p.m.
The class met two other times during the week which was usually when we'd take a test. On those days, I'd go to Burger King at the Lincoln Mall for lunch and down a Big Mac with a large order of fries and a diet Coke. I'm still thin but back then I was 92 lbs. On days when I was super hungry, I'd have two Big Macs.
My major was English and I loved the comfort of the film and writing classes which were taught by my all-time favorite college professor, Mr. Sullivan. His day off was Tuesday and he would go to the Showcase Cinemas in Seekonk, Mass. and see a first-run movie like "An Officer and A Gentlemen."
He loved writing poetry and on the day he dedicated a poem to me it was so racy I had to put my head down in embarrassment.
I took several semesters of classes with Mr. Sullivan (including Film as Literature II and II), where I excelled with straight A's, then transferred to Emerson College in Boston to study print journalism. It was a new major at the time with less than 10 students. I never forgot Mr. Sullivan's words of encouragement and his enthusiasm for my writing.
He was so in tune with things that he advised me not to marry my now ex-husband.
"You're too smart and too pretty, Marilyn. It will never last." he said. How did he know what my future held?
Right after I started this blog at the beginning of the year, I ran into Mr. Sullivan. So many years had passed, yet he remembered me.
"You look fantastic!" he said. "You still have that youthful energy."
A month or so later, Mr. Sullivan posted a comment on my blog telling me to keep up the good work. It made me feel so good to be reunited with my favorite college professor and to know that he would be following my writing.
But that all ended yesterday when Mr. Sullivan died. In his memory, I recognize the patron saint of professors, St. John Cantius. He was born on June 23, 1390 in Poland. He was a theologian and professor of Sacred Scriptures. He died on Dec. 24, 1473. Canonized: 1767. St. John Cantius's feast day is Dec. 23.