summer how many times she had flown to far off places she had not been able to say Imagine flying more times than you could remember And imagine that after so much traveling Bolivia insisted that Woodside New Jersey was one of the best places she had ever been Do you think she will have changed Derek whispered to Rory as they were driving toward the airport They hadn't seen her for four months and Derek worried that she might be different Suppose they didn't like her anymore Suppose she didn't like them Rory shook his head It's irrelevant he said using one of the big words that his father was always teaching him Even if she changes she'll still be more interesting than anyone else we know And more fun said Derek remembering their past adventures There was a lot of traffic around Newark Airport Look how many people are traveling Mrs Golding marveled I bet they are all going to Florida
Why does everyone want to go there asked Derek They want to escape from the cold said Mr Golding I could use a bit of hot sun myself right now How silly grown ups were Derek thought It was a cold day but that didn't bother him Winter was supposed to be cold And if they were lucky they would get a couple of good snowstorms before the season ended Inside the waiting area Mrs Golding checked the flight board The plane is on time she announced Derek had never even considered that it might be delayed He had waited long enough for this moment He could not bear waiting one minute more Here I am Bolivia shouted as she pushed her way past the other passengers disembarking from the plane She looked exactly as he remembered Her red hair was poking out of a red and white woolen hat and she had a long red and white scarf hanging around her neck
Mrs Golding grabbed her great niece in her arms for a big hug Then Mr Golding had his turn Derek and Rory stood by grinning self consciously They were glad to see their friend but they certainly weren't going to express it the same way old people did Bolivia grinned at them Happy Boxing Day she announced What's that asked Derek In England December 26th is a national holiday In the old days people gave their servants money in little boxes on the day after Christmas So it got to be called Boxing Day Derek had forgotten that Bolivia always knew odd pieces of information She was a walking trivia game At first it had been irritating but after a while he realized that she was also very interesting He had picked up a lot of unusual information last summer We've got boxes for you at home said Rory But they don't contain money I've got boxes for all of you too promised promised Bolivia It's fun to have Christmas
presents two days in a row Where's Lucette asked Derek as Bolivia claimed her luggage Lucette was Bolivia's pet parrot She had come to Woodside with her last summer I couldn't bring her because of the cold weather Don't forget parrots are tropical birds Then seeing the disappointed expressions on the boys faces Bolivia added But she sends you greetings I taught her to say Happy New Year When they got to Woodside they went to the Goldings house where Bolivia distributed the gifts that were in her suitcase There were packages containing red and white hats and scarves for both Derek and Rory Red and white are the Cornell colors Bolivia told them Derek remembered that Cornell was the name of the college where Bolivia's parents taught The boys gift for Bolivia was a poster size blowup of a snapshot Rory's mother had taken of the three of them last summer
