I remember the night like it was yesterday. He walked into the smoky room with a smile from ear to ear and a sparkle in his eyes. A dimple lay between the fu manchu mustache and the mutton chop sideburns, and his thick long hair flowed--the kind of hair that when backlit with a bright light appeared as a glowing halo. The juke box played typical mid-70s songs like "Maggie Mae," some Airplane and Crosby, Stills Nash and Young and the Styxx ballad "Lady"--"Lady, from the moment I saw you standing all alone." We adopted that song as our own. My heart would beat in anticipation of seeing him just as it did that first time.

Love at first sight? Absolutely--I knew it then and I still believe it today! Now, 28 years later, the sideburns and fu manchu are gone. The length of hair is gone and the glow is now from beautiful silver. The sparkle in his eyes and the wonderful grin remain. As the years passed, the love has grown--as lovers, companions and best friends. I see friends and relatives whose marriages have faltered and disintegrated leaving pain and bitterness. I know that this man--with whom I fell in love in that smoky room 28 years ago--has given me great happiness and I am singularly blessed.

Paula Puffer