Having recently celebrated my 100th birthday, I have taken the time to reflect on many things. Although we recognize July 4, 1776 as the date our Independence was declared, it wasn’t until June 21, 1788 that New Hampshire became the ninth and last necessary state to ratify the Constitution of the United States, thereby making the document the law of the land.

My phone buzzed as I was walking out the door, and an alert about dangerous driving popped on the screen: black ice caused by an unusual “freezing fog.” Having totaled my car about 10 years ago on …