On my eightieth birthday, my son arranged for me to have a video call with several friends whom I’d left behind in the United States when I moved to France. So touched was I by their sorely missed, albeit electronic, presence that I found it difficult to talk. I was embarrassed by my inability to stop crying. One friend is a woman from Ohio whom I met on vacation in Kauai. Over time, she became like a younger sister. I entertained her and her family several times in my former California home. We’ve laughed together, played together, shopped together, and