Back when I was in St. Sylvester School in Brooklyn, we usually started each semester with a motto for the term. I don't remember most of them, but two stand out. One was, "We must abhor every sort of affectation" and the other was, "Pride goes before a fall".

Today I learned about pride. Yesterday, I was bragging that after 43 years, I still had a complete set of china, and that I have rarely broken any dishes and glasses. Today while I was washing some bowls, one larger one slipped and knocked two others onto the stove, breaking them.

I think from now on, I'll keep quiet about my good luck with household furnishings.