… and then in later years, when all the sisters would gather, they would secretly compare behinds, each thankful in their own way that theirs was not the widest, secretly commiserating with the sister with the widest and most prominent behind, the “curse of the family” as they said, secretly communicating, in their sincere and loving hugs, sympathy to the “winner”, oblivious to the fact that each sister was hugged in turn by all the others, each sister more sympathetic and compassionate to the others as the years passed.  And the years did pass.  Year by year, holiday by holiday, Christmas by Christmas, summer by summer, after a time those events and things which once were new and different and exciting became, not old and stale, but comfortable and worn and cherished, bathed in love, a communion of life created and blessed by years of gentle touches, sharp short cat fights, ferocious defense of any one offended, regardless of whether they were right or wrong – “Hey, what are sisters for?”  – and after a time, their moments together were blessed by a natural, loving and pervasive patina of warm glowing life, with a natural fit, and as one had once said, “You know what we’re like?  Together we are natural and comfortable.  It’s like underwear, as you grow older.  The older your get, the more you really like the underwear with the ‘relaxed elastic’.  Yes, indeed we are the relaxed elastic of the underwear of life to each other.”  And they laughed, and chortled, and snorted together, and that was good, and it pleased them to be together, each one pleased even more than the fact that they were never the winner of the widest behind.  Yes, indeed.  And their laughter and chortling and snorting together was always made more loving and kind and satisfying because of their love and compassion for the winner that season, that summer, that Christmas, that year.