CLANCY LOOKS UP from the pot she’s stirring and frowns. “Well, look what the cat dragged in. I thought I told you not to be gone long.” I slide into my seat and watch her ladle pasta and sauce on my plate. “Marinara,” she says. “No meat.” I watch steam curl up from the pasta. It’s way too hot for a meal like this, but I figure I’d better eat it since she went to the trouble of leaving meat out. She sits down across from me. “You know what? I talked to that pediatrician about growing boys needing meat, and she said not to worry about it, just to make sure you get your protein from cheese and nuts and things like that.” She waves a hand at the shaker of Parmesan cheese. “Take as much as you like.” I sprinkle a pile of grated cheese on the marinara sauce and watch it melt. Mrs. Clancy does the same. “You know something else?” she asks. “Dr. Phillips said it’s good for people my age to cut back on red meat. She gave me a pamphlet about cholesterol and suggested I talk to my doctor about it.”
