Certain phrases are like music to my ears.
“I love you” is probably at the top of the list, provided it’s from someone I want to have loving me.
Others that closely follow include:

• The next round is on me.
• You look great.
• Take the rest of the day off.

Recently I added a new phrase to that list: “Your lump was benign.”
You might recall that I recently had a lump removed. My doctor assured me repeatedly before the surgery that it felt like fat, not cancer, but we could take it out if I wanted to, which I did.
In a follow-up office visit, my doctor gave me a tiny scare when he started out by saying “The tissue was a little unusual.” I immediately braced for bad news, but let out a happy sigh when he followed with “It was benign.”
Just like he’d expected, it was a glob of fat that started growing too fast. I’d like to use that to explain why some of my clothes got too snug after the holidays, but I think that explanation was less medical and more culinary.
So I got the good news, and took the rest of the afternoon off. My incision is looking pretty great. I guess that means the next round is on me?