Book excerpt: The habits of a lifetime ebb slowly, and so we have this honest, moving and gently amusing account of a retirement that began, in 2014, when beloved Texas writer Leon Hale was 93.In his inimitable voice, Hale reveals his personal joys and regrets as he traverses the territory of old age, which has come to him later than it does to many people. We're with him at the dinner party where he told an 11 PM story at 8:30; we learn why he doesn't like the ocean, but loves the shore. For the first time, he shares the World War II experience that haunts him still; and relates the sad drama of his first divorce. We watch turf battles between blue birds and chickadees, and observe his mother's long effort to teach a parakeet her favorite Bible verse. Friends and family populate these pages. He marvels at his daughter's love affair with Africa and the sudden arrival of three far flung grandchildren soon after Hurricane Harvey. Fishing with his wife's four-year-old grandson ends with a surprise entertainment.There are health challenges, oh yes, and the give and take that goes on in a happy marriage. Through it all, however, flows the unstoppable optimism that has sustained him through every crisis.For anyone who has wondered what it's like to approach their hundredth birthday, here is one inspiring and truthful answer, told with the special sheen of wit and human feeling that we have come to expect from this fine writer.