He worried that he was wasting our time.

“You’re not,” I told him, and sat down.

We went through the list slowly.

His daughter arrived toward the end and looked relieved that somebody had taken notes.

Nothing dramatic happened.

I didn’t deliver a miracle, find an unusual diagnosis, or discover that grief had turned me into a wiser person overnight.

I simply did the work in front of me.

Afterward, I ate the sandwich I had brought for lunch instead of leaving it in the refrigerator until midnight.