We stayed in Chicago for four days and then drove to Kingston, N.Y., for my engineering job at IBM. Over the years we've moved a bit in my efforts to earn a buck. From Kingston she moved back to Chicago when I was in the Coast Guard. Then we were off on to Hackensack, N.J., to Fullerton, Terra Linda and Los Gatos, Calif., to Huntington Bay, N.Y., and to Boston. Boston was our favorite, a great walking town and great views from our apartment on Boylston Street.

Along the way, we adopted three children who have given us nine grandchildren. The oldest grandchild is now married, but there are no current plans to make us great-grandparents.

Over the years I have given Barbara enough reasons to dump me, but for whatever reason she hung in there, and for that I am forever grateful. I spent too many hours working, too many days away from home on business trips, and along the way there were times when the booze got the best of me. But she stuck it out, hoping that someday I'd become the man she believed I could be. Thanks for that.

Now we're going to junior college together. She has become quite an artist and has been taking art classes at the college for several years. This is my first semester so I don't know my way around the campus. On the first day of school, I felt I was in kindergarten again, as Barbara drove us to school and walked me to my classroom, then kissed me and waved goodbye. Then she went off to her class with a smile on her face.

Life is beautiful indeed, but life without my jitterbugging partner would be no life at all.

When Frank isn't studying Mexican American history, he can be reached at fburge@cmp.com.