6. Something Sweet
Dearest Family and Friends, Children in the backseat quickly forget there is an adult driving the automobile. Car trips are a terrific opportunity to hear young people’s unfiltered thoughts. In California, you might hear a backseat conversation such as this: Vivian (our seven year old grandchild, to her twin sister, Irene): “What’s your life source, Renee?” Irene: “I feel a deep connection to jump rope.” Vivian: “I think jump rope is my life source too.” What is your life source? My wife Marcia’s life source turns out to be glucose. I don’t mean glucose as a source of life’s energy — the fuel for cellular respiration. Marcia’s life source is knowing her glucose level — the number — as measured by her new continuous glucose monitor (CGM), a white dime-sized device she wears on the back of her arm under an adhesive patch. Marcia’s continuous glucose monitor measures the glucose concentration in her body tissue fluid and transmits the result to her phone, refreshing its output every minut...