And then there is an evening when you being a mother/aunt means that your children/nephew sit round your old table and they talk about books and music and they tell stories and they quiz each other on history, geography, politics and each other and they squabble about who's winning and the light fades and cooler air plumes through the window and they light candles and yawn and laugh and chide and you want to hold them in that orb of light forever.