Kathy's Dad

When I make toast, butter it and put a little jam on, I think of Kathy's dad.  He owned a little coffee shop/cafe/diner in New Haven.  I never went there.  One morning he made us breakfast at home and talked about buttering toast and about how much jam to use.  He said that when you have less, you taste it more.  At the time I was 18, had just met this man, and was quite occupied with other things going on.  I did not expect that this simple idea would become some sort of constant thread through my life.  This morning, when I made myself some toast, I thought of Kathy's dad.  It occurred to me that that has been happening without fail for 40 years, and that makes me very happy.