Chapter 7

That fall, I moved back into Perkins Hall on Everett Street at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. My rosary bracelet was in its box without a wrist of a woman worthy enough to wear it. Teresa was not worthy of the bracelet, and neither was Sheila. It was a new school year at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. There were plenty of new prospects. I just hoped they didn't come to Harvard born with boyfriends, fiances, or husbands like virtually all the previous girlfriend prospects.

Fall semester was hectic. I fought, the crowds at the Harvard Coop on Massachusetts Avenue near the Au Bon Pain bakery and cafe in Harvard Square. I purchased two textbooks, Classical Electrodynamics by Jackson and Statistical Mechanics by Huang. The Department of Physics in principle allowed graduate students to enroll in up to four classes per semester. In practice, the courses were so demanding, most grad students, myself included, took only two classes per semester.

I walked through the park-like setting of Harvard Yard where the parents of freshmen were parking their cars. It was move-in week for all new students at the University.

On my way to Perkins Hall, I saw her at her at the entrance. She had the voice of an angel. She said to me, "Could you help me bring up my books to my room?"

This woman with long dark hair and wearing a white sleeveless, button up blouse led me to her white Volvo station wagon. She opened the trunk and said, "You look like such a strong man."

"Why thank you...what's your name?"

"Anna," said the dark haired woman. Her skin seemed to glow like the halo of a saint. She had a great smile when she gazed upon me.

"And yours?"

"Michael," I said, "Michael Sanglao." We shook hands.

"What kind of name is Sanglao?"

"It's Filipino."

"I don't know too many Filipinos. Where are you from?"

"Las Vegas."

"Wow, you've come a long way to get here."

"Where are you from, Anna?"

"Minneapolis."

"I've never been to Minnesota."

"I've never been to Nevada. What's is like there?"

"Hot, lots of shrub and sand. It's in the middle of the desert."

"That must be interesting. Did you gamble there?"

"I wasn't into that."

"You look like a man who gets lucky a lot."

What did she mean by that? Could Anna be the one to wear my rosary bracelet? I decided to make good on my agreement and carry Anna's books to her room.

"Here, I'll open the door for you," she said. She unlocked the door.

"Gee, thanks," I said. I hauled load after load of textbooks to Anna's room. In the course of my moving boxes of books, I asked her, "What department are you in?"

"I'm with the School of Education, master's program," said Anna.

"I'm in physics."

"That was my major in college," Anna said. I fell in love with her immediately.