WHEN MY 59-YEAR-OLD NEIGHBOR KNOCKED AT MIDNIGHT, I THOUGHT I WAS FIXING A PIPE, BUT I WAS REALLY SAVING MY OWN LIFE…

inhale deeply, and say things like, “It smells like rain,” or “You’ve made the coffee too strong again,” and I would tell her she smelled like cinnamon and hope, which made her roll her eyes even when she secretly liked it.

We argued about practical things. Where the compost bin should go. Whether Oliver was allowed on the table. Whether Frank Sinatra continue reading …