I became acquainted with loss early in life. I was born into an elderly extended family. The next youngest person to me was my mother. I spent my whole childhood going to one funeral after another as each of the relatives died off... one after another. At the time, I didn't really think much about it. The funerals were just obligations that temporarily interrupted whatever else I had going on in my young life. They've all been gone now for many decades, including my parents. I don't think about them much anymore. I'm old myself now. My spouse is a few years younger than I am. Hopefully, I'm next...