On each I said the same essential thing: Grandma loves you, today and every day.

I signed them with a drawing of a little red heart.

PART 6

On December twenty-sixth I began a more careful review of my finances.

I had retired from managing a small insurance office six years earlier, and I understood enough about accounts and paperwork to know that emotional decisions become dangerous when they are not followed by practical ones.

I called my bank to confirm that the standing transfers under my control had been canceled.