Dearest Gentle Readers,

Stacy Lyn dusted us off this week! Yes, we know – she opines that she is travel weary, but who could deny that a trip to Biloxi, Mississippi to sign books would be oh so much fun? Not us!

So off we drove in the direction of coastal Mississippi, one of Stacy Lyn’s favorite places. You see, she has a history there, and so many happy childhood memories of this quaint spot of earth and sea.

Biloxi has grown in recent years. It’s a boomtown with all the casinos providing jobs for Mississippians and revenue for the state.

Stacy Lyn stayed at the Beau Rivage, and she reverted to her childhood self – the self who embraces Christmas with abandon – when she espied evidence of celebration. This jolly old soul adorned his car with reindeer antlers! When Stacy Lyn was overseas, she really missed how Americans make a big deal of Christmas. She wanted to hug the car owner’s neck, but he was nowhere to be seen. We think this is probably a good thing, for his sake.

But the antler-adorned car was only the beginning of Stacy Lyn’s delight! In her mind, she was dancing in the snowy North Pole as she beheld the beauty of the resort’s Christmas decorations.

We Socks desired to get in on the fun, too, to frolic in the snow, but Stacy Lyn wouldn’t let us go any further than fanfare in the poinsettias. Can you see us hiding among all that red?

Patient Norm just let Socks and Stacy wallow in Christmas then took us to the beach to wallow some more in the sugary sand. We imagined that the sand was a field of downy flakes, but everyone knows that the temperatures are far too mild for snow down here, and that Santa must use a pirogue to reach the the children of the Deep South!

As Helios said his farewell, Norm took Stacy Lyn’s hand and guided her to the water’s edge. There, Stacy Lyn remembered.

Her mind swam across the ocean to that other gulf – the Gulf of Guinea – where years ago she dipped her toe in the water to connect to those she loves on this gulf. 

Now she is here, and all is right with the universe. Even if it’s not snowing in December.