Maturity

The surprise party was a blast, and genuinely a surprise–who thinks to throw a party for your 105th? Clark had a bucket of champagne; he didn’t get drunk easily. It was a small party (the big one was no surprise and had been covered by all the major and minor news outlets). He got a little maudlin…remembering…

“Your son is…backwards. Retarded (this was 1943). He’s 10 years old but with the mind of an infant.” Martha and Jonathan refused to institutionalise him. “He’s just slow. He’ll catch up.” Their confidence was touching. And correct. Immortals mature slowly and age imperceptibly.