My grandma didn't want twins, so my grandpa had my father's two month old foetus removed and implanted in himself; just another reason she called him, “Best Big Brother”
"Misfortune precedes us by destiny, and that they befall good men by the same law that makes them good, after this, I prevail upon you never to pity any good man.
Rank alone wasn’t enough, one needed social approval and a mix of the right introductions to score an invitation, so it wasn't just title and wealth that gained an invitation but being respectable in society.
TIhe missing leg, which now cooked slowly on the spit, made that rather difficult. pulled my pants up, taking the time to get every wrinkle and speck of dirt off.