They Forgot to Invite Me to Christmas—So I Bought a Mountain. When They Came to Take It, the Deputy Was Already Waiting.

mine.

“As I was saying,” I announced to my friends, heading back to the kitchen, “who wants hot cocoa on the deck? Extra marshmallows?”

We carried steaming mugs outside into the clean cold night and watched the valley darken to a sea of scattered lights. Someone started a countdown from the wrong number; everyone laughed and kept going anyway. At midnight,continue reading …