My wife Janet and I had a very pleasant lunch with my brother and sister-in-law in Manhattan today. They were going to a matinee performance of a Broadway play.

My wife and I walked up Fifth Avenue together and parted at the corner of 39th Street. A beautiful day. We had separate plans for the rest of the afternoon.

I kissed her goodbye and was overcome by a powerful emotion, a visceral sense like a stomach pain. I felt a pang of loss parting from her, albeit briefly.

Someday we will be parted forever, I thought.

— Roger W. Smith

August 26, 2017