This evening I am visiting a couple who have a lovely house out in the country. They are also somewhat older — the husband is eighty four.
We got to talking about their neighbors, and my host told me that he is in a running feud with the man who owns the house on an adjoining property. They got into a fight ten years ago, and since then they have not spoken one word to each other.
He went on to say that the only form of communication they now have is a sort of grim unspoken competition — whoever stays alive the longest wins.
At this last bit of news I perked up. “Do you realize,” I said, “that your neighbor is doing you an enormous favor? After all, because of him, you might end up staying alive and healthy for years to come.”