justice sandra o'connor

justice sandra o'connor retired last year from the us supreme court. her husband suffers from alzheimer's disease. he thinks that he has a romance with another woman; and justice o'connor is thrilled. she is relieved to see her husband of 55 years so content.

she even "visits" with the "new couple" in an assisted-living center while they hold hands on the porch swing.

relationships can still develop among alzheimer's patients; "new attachments", they call them. the desire for intimacy still persists even when dementia steals so much else.

heartbreak can happen at 80, but probably "without the rage against the dying of the light." the story of the o'connors reveals a poignancy and the richness of love in the later years; it provides a rare model at a time when we are living longer, and .. and loving longer.