Thanks to the sun and rain for the kumquats. Thanks to the typhoon for leaving most of the kumquats. Thanks to the kumquats for the winter color to come.

Thanks to Ryuso Mountain. You saved my life.

Thanks to the man I sometimes meet on Ryuso Mountain, for giving me this dried persimmon. (Did he see that I was the type to always be having Persimmon Dreams?)

Thanks to my hiking buddies for pulling me up through their wake.

Thanks to my camera for helping me  see better. I apologize for all the times I’ve dropped you.

Thanks to this particular telephone pole, for always being in the perfect spot.

Thanks to Dr. Bates, for including Moby-Dick on his syllabus. I think that was 1978.

Thanks to this particular copy of the book, to all its yellowing pages. Both the cover and the pages have held up well.

Thanks to Ishmael and Queequeg for their friendship. Thanks to Ishmael for taking a long and hard look at things and sharing his thoughts. Thanks to him for suggesting an outlook on things that works pretty well. Works pretty well for me, at least.

Thanks to all those folks who tend to gather in Watkinsville this time of year. Thanks to friends and family here, there, and everythere–including those I haven’t been able to meet or speak with in a long, long time. You are not forgotten–nor ever will be. I’ll be thinking of you when I make Christmas cookies.