My apologies to all of you who have stopped by and left kind wishes for the holidays, as I have not been able to get back to you for the past several weeks. In case you are interested, we had a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner with family and friends, followed by a spectacular meal Christmas day, thanks to the culinary talents of our nephew and his girlfriend, both professional chefs. I sincerely hope all of you survived the last minute pressures this time of year always seems to bring, and were able to share your celebrations with someone near and dear. My best present, the visit home of my favorite poet, is sadly drawing to an all too rapid end, as his flight leaves in the morning for Paris. Still, I have the consolation of irreplaceable moments shared together, coupled with the knowledge that I shall be able to see him and his lovely wife again soon in the New Year. I’m working this weekend, but promise to resume my weekly postings before another Saturday rolls around, as well as taking the time to visit with all of you, whose writings I have missed. We, along with the rest of the world, appear to have a challenging year ahead of us. Let us hope we shall all be given the grace, humor, and good fortune to get through it together. Happy New Year!

J.