Did his father look older? Yes, just a little older. His brothers, too, were older, and so the youngest son supposed that he must be older, as well.
-- The Youngest Son (The White Cat's Divorce)

Importance: As the Old Man tries to evade death, and does everything from intensive surgery and dieting, to marrying increasingly young women to do so, time marches on relentlessly. Momentary details such as this convey the passing of time, that not even the Old Man can stop. It acts as a memento mori, or a gentle reminder of death. Each instance becomes a thread woven into the fabric of his existence, an undeniable testimony to the unstoppable nature of the cycle of life and death that even the Old Man himself, with all his tenacity and cunning, cannot hope to defy. Thus, these subtle yet profound details silently resonate, echoing the ultimate truth that death is an inescapable fate, forever entwined with the...