My name is Ian Koss. This is Forever is a Long Time. Part 5, my aunt Rory.

I think in a way I'm coming to you last, because in my mind at least, you relate with this topic a little

differently than most of my family because you haven't

structured your life around a romantic partner in the same way that most other members of my family

have like you have a very strong and internal sense of yourself that guides you, at least from my perspective.

And I was curious if that feels accurate to you, if that's how you see yourself.

I do.

You know, because I have been, I mean, since I got divorced, I really only had one long-term

relationship, and that ended, you know,

decades ago at this point. And to add to that or to help, I think, help create that is that I lived

away from family for a really long time. And I was on my own a lot for holidays and birthdays,

and, you know, you either throw yourself into relationships to

not be alone or you find a way to embrace that as that being alone doesn't have to mean lonely

being alone doesn't have to mean that there's anything wrong it's just what you are doing and

to me i'm pretty good company. I'm funny.

And I'm, you know what I mean?

It's like I just feel like that's a nice thing to feel about yourself.

Yeah. When I was growing up, we didn't see Rory nearly as much as my mother's other siblings.

But she had a deal where whenever one of us kids turned 16,

she would fly us out to California, where she was at the time, and we do all the silly Torah stuff that one does in California, like go to the Jelly Belly factory and drive down

that really curvy street in San Francisco.

I have this distinct memory of going to a piano bar together,

...