My younger brother Blane lives only five hours away but somehow we let five years pass since seeing each other. COVID was responsible for a couple of those, his schedule and inertia accounted for the rest.

When he sat down in “Barb’s chair,” Riley immediately crawled up in his lap. She does this whenever Barb sits down but –try as I might– I’ve never been able to coax her up in my lap. Sigh.