Dinner Party

 May 9, 2026

D and her husband P here for dinner last night. She has become her mother, and there were moments when I had to consider twice to be sure whom I was talking to. She observed that I have become my father. P is both an unexpected and perfect mate for her, a pilot and a computer programer, light hearted where she is inclined to be morose. They have given themselves to good works through their church, including a summer camp for children in foster care. Three times she said, “You were at Michael’s funeral,” which made me hugely glad that I was. I can barely remember a time when I didn’t know D, and yet what do I know of her? Last night was the longest conversation we ever had. I remember her preference for dark meat and for the skin of the turkey at Thanksgiving when we were kids, but I had to ask her how many kids she has, and what she did for a living. She remembered a salad I made out of wild greens.