On Longevity

For a people whose country was formed by defying a king, we Americans show an amazingly lively interest in things royal. What fascinates many, including me, is the British monarchs’ longevity. It is a topic that is often in my mind, given the fact that the present Queen and I are the same age. That may be the reason for this strange dream I had. It involved an old lady with whom I somehow came to share a cup of British tea. She looked somehow familiar. “Are you not the Queen’s Mom?” I asked her. She confirmed that and it caused me some embarrassment because I did not know how to address someone of that rank in the third person. I settled for “madam” and asked her: “Would Madam like a piece of cake with her tea?” To my astonishment she unwrapped a parcel she had brought along. It contained a huge cake in the form of a ball, something British and spongy. She had baked it herself, she confided, but “it did not pop although I baked it and baked it.”

Now if that is not a first class metaphor I don’t know what is. Here is to all seniors, then: Keep baking. No hurry to pop!