As I have gotten older, I endured a wide variety of time's insults to my body and mind. Many of them were anticipated. Others were not. Most I have taken in stride, amazed that I lasted this long.

I always thought of myself as being six feet tall, as measured in my youth and noted on my driver's license. Recently, I found out that I have shrunk two inches. Of all the things that aging has done to me, for some reason this one most of all makes me feel violated.