……………………..My Mother was 27 when she got married, and in those days that was considered late….but my Mom lived her life and had fun with her friends along the way….They were very liberated women of their times, and wanted to have fun. “The Girls” vacationed together, went to clubs and partied together…..However, she also had a boyfriend…..that was not my father…..His name was Marco…..My Mom and I used to sit, and she would pull out her boxes of photos to show me. She wanted to share her life with me to let me know she had a LIFE before she married my Dad…….She told me all about Marco the man she almost married….. Marco had dark blond hair and blue eyes, and was very handsome. She truly thought she was going to marry him…..Then it happened…..She went away for a weekend with Marco, her best girlfriend and her girlfriend’s boyfriend at the time. The photo at the right is of Marco. The photo at the left is the four of them. My Mom is in the back standing on the car…[fabulous car]…..She said all was going well…They were having a good time…..There were lots of cats roaming around the property…..One afternoon Marco picked one up swung it around by its’ tail and flung it into the air……My Mom was horrified….She told me as soon as they got home she broke up with him, because she realized in that moment if he could treat a defenseless animal like that how would he treat her, and their children once they were married…..I asked her why she kept these pictures. She replied……”to always remind me of the mistake I almost made”. She said “you really have to know someone before you spend the rest of your life together”………Of course I was very happy she didn’t marry him! If she had I wouldn’t be here to tell the tale!!