Santa Land Podcast

Chapter Twenty Seven: A Boat, Some Flowers & Some Flames

In this episode of the Santa Land Podcast Tom continues his walk on the beach and imagines putting a part of himself in a boat and sending it off to Valhalla. "Maybe grief causes us to rip ourselves open and look at the pieces of ourselves, just like desk toys," he wonders aloud.

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Chapter Twenty Six: Perception is Only Nine Tenths of Reality

In this episode of the Santa Land Podcast; in the season of Independence Day we find Tom walking on the beach contemplating the relevance of perception and observation. He recalls a conversation with Mary about the connection between perception (the instant of existence) and the forming of a sentence and why words matter. It's a quantum thing.

Tom also enters a poem he wrote for David into his journal called Different Day.

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Chapter Twenty Five: A Cricket & A Cursor

In this episode of the Santa Land Podcast, The cricket makes an appearance to a sleepy Tom, too caught in the web of memory to notice. We go backwards to a trip to a vineyard where Tom discovers the difference between signs and sanity and for the first time in more time than he can remember Tom had the time and the privacy to finally grieve Wendy.

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Chapter Twenty Four: The Path of Sorrows

In one of the most personal chapters of Santa Land, Tom journeys into a memory long buried—one shaped by silence, innocence, and unimaginable sorrow. Through the quiet guidance of the cricket and the soft unfolding of truth, we are invited to witness not the trauma itself, but the resilience it forged.

This episode explores the tender intersection of grief, memory, and the quiet strength required to name what was once unspoken. It is a chapter of shadows, yes—but also of survival, of soft-hearted defiance, and of love's enduring presence in the darkest rooms.

Please listen gently. And know: You are not alone. You never were.

Resources:

missingkids.org

publichealth.jhu.ed

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Chapter Twenty Three: Three Thirty Three

We learn the mystery of 333 and why it means magic for Tom and David.

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Chapter Twenty Two: She had the kind of face that invited conversations about the weather.

In this chapter, we find David on the beach collecting debris and collecting sentence for Tom. As he navigates his way, he reflects on the value that such things have on their lives.

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Life's a beach and then you try.

David takes a visit to the beach with the dog, where he ponders the nature of belief and his purpose in the story of Tom.

On his walk he meets a neighbor who's toddler reminds him of the simple joys of living.

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Chapter Twenty: Pieced Together from Sentences

As the story of Tom unfolds, we learn more about David's role and we discover the beauty of truly listening.

David recount's his own story of Tom's love of letters, more specifically the metaphor and the poetry of things that exist in that space between letters that become words. Words become alchemy for Tom, and sentences restore his faith in the world and sets the stage for the worlds he would create for himself and for others.

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Chapter Nineteen: Angels and Monsters

The ticking of the bookshelf grows louder, and with it, Tom's sense that something is coming undone. A glance at the titles he's written becomes more than pride—it becomes a reckoning. In this pivotal chapter, Tom remembers how Meredith entered his life, orchestrated by Maria, his first editor and quiet guardian. The encounter is electric, fateful—and laced with shadows.

As the story unfolds, we're also taken back further still—to a childhood moment with his mother, Wendy, when she placed a pen in his hand and told him to write his feelings down. A moment of rescue that would define him… and a foreshadowing of her absence when he would need her most.

Meanwhile, David watches, patient and silent, as Meredith takes up space. And somewhere between the bookshelf, the dragon, and the chicken, the stage is set for a question the reader won't be able to shake:

Where was everyone when it mattered most?

(Note: no commentary follows this episode).

If you or someone you know is the victim of a sexual crime, you can reach out to the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673

Chapter 18: David's Point Exactly

Tom feels the mounting weight of expectation as a moment with David becomes unexpectedly charged with memory, tension, and legacy. A simple glance at the bookshelf—once a source of pride—now ticks like a clock, reminding Tom of the pressure to deliver something greater than before.

But as the memory of a chance meeting with Meredith resurfaces, we discover the invisible forces behind Tom's rise: the quiet loyalty of David, the strategic elegance of Maria, and the firestorm that is Meredith. This episode explores the people who shape us, the pressures that haunt us, and the strange comfort of a good chicken analogy.

And yes, even dragons have feathers sometimes.