I wish to acknowledge the following individuals who, in 2005 and 2006, as I was finishing this book, helped to sustain me through much loss. First my husband, Oscar, and my parents, Robert and Marie; sister Leigh Ann and brother-in-law Larry; my agent, Jennifer Lyons; my editor, Caitlyn Dlouhy; and last, but certainly not least, champions Karen Levinson, Allen Brill, and Ashley Normand. In my midst, too, were caring friends and neighbors: Carol and Jeffrey, Lou and Laurie, Jenny and Jamie, Roger, Meg and Mark, David and Sue, Jonathan, Monroe, Edith, Shirley, Barbara and Jim, and Marilyn. And farther afield, in other states and countries, were friends whose prayers and kindness reminded me to look for beauty: Marjorie and John, Ylva, Constanza, and Pina. Thank you all. For your humanity.