the missing man

I forget his name -- he was nice, easy to be with, a great rollerskater, and he drove up every Sunday afternoon (this was our date) with his mother -- he said, "she loved to go for a drive on Sundays." And he had a job, tending guinea pigs at a local hospital, feeding them, cleaning up after them, making sure they were "comfortable for the night." I was dating soldiers -- hand-picked for me by John. John and Catherine had brought me up from Medway to their home in Virginia -- Fort Myers, home of the 3rd cavalry -- they had two young daughters and watched over me as they did their daughters. But I was 23 and looking for my independence, which I couldn't have (or thought so) at home. This photo was taken at the Fort one day. John, seeing the car drive up would say, Here's your "guinea pig nurse, Mary" -- he was somewhat cruel at times (particularly when he'd prefer I'd pick one of his soldiers).