At 28, living and working in Washington, D.C., I found dating was expected but exhausting. I was working constantly and putting in long hours. I even recall falling asleep in a Washington, D.C., nightclub with a perfectly nice date.

“It would help your career if you were married. It would be a signal of your stability, maturity and make you more acceptable” a male friend once told me. In spite of that advice, I said no more blind boring dates, and marriage would not be a part of my future. One month after that well thought out, logical decision, I met my prince charming and we have been married for forty one years.

How I expected to be treated by men has a great deal to do with my relationship with my father. He set the standard for my personal relationships with men and how I interacted with men in the workplace. He had such respect for my mother and his daughters and for our opinions and feelings. He would convey to my sister and me that with a college education we could be anything we wanted to be in life. An important seed for self-confidence! I believe his positive interaction with us on an emotional and intellectual level was the foundation for my relationships with men. His constant display of hugs, kisses and willingness to show tears when he was emotionally moved set a powerful example. My sister Judy has been married for 52 years and I have been married for 41 years. With so many divorces around me, I credit my mother and father with showing the way.