I have twin grandchildren, although they are fraternal (boy and girl). The bonding is certainly not as tight as we have seen in friends who were identical, but it seems to be there. (They got a pick up truck, which they will have to share, at Christmas. So, we will see what strains that imposes on the bond. Yes, the girl definitely wanted a truck.)

On aging. There was a woman, in the home in which my mother-in-law lived, who made it to 105. You never saw her without an open book. She was deaf, and that may have been a partial reason that she hid in her books. The staff were diligent about walking her up and down the drive in good weather. On her 100th birthday she called her daughter and said: “Nancy, I have been walking for 100 years. I am not going to walk any more. Tell these people to leave me be.”

As one who has fewer years ahead than behind and encountering the gradual breakdown of both physical and mental abilities, I wonder what challenges and possible horrors may lie ahead. To be warehoused in a facility as an incontinent, drooling shell of myself seems a future most undesirable. To lie down one night in one’s own bed and peacefully depart this life is a fate much to be desired for an old codger. Unfortunately, we have little choice in the matter. An extremely healthy life style guarantees nothing. Beyond that, it is in God’s hands.