I BOUGHT MYSELF A BIRTHDAY CAKE
A Quiet BirthdayOn his 97th birthday, Mr. L woke up alone—“no candles, no cards, no phone calls.” Living above a closed hardware store, his days are quiet, his room sparse. He bought himself a small cake: “Happy 97th, Mr. L,” it read. After lighting a candle, he sent a photo to his estranged son Eliot,…