MY MOTHER RECENTLY BOUGHT ME A BLUEBERRY BAGEL, though she’s been dead for years. Let me explain.

I was running late for a physical therapy appointment in Somerville, so I rushed off without eating breakfast. As I sat in traffic, it hit me: I was madly hungry. Headache hungry. To my right was a Dunkin’ Donuts. I parked and reached in my pocket to check my wallet. But there was something wrong with my wallet pocket. There was no wallet in it. I’d left it at home.