Flying against dark skies, seagulls appear silver.

Chilled by the sudden approach of a spring shower while walking this morning, I wrapped my jacket tighter as I gazed at the glistening birds soaring overhead. The sun, rising behind me, caused the gull's wings-reflecting against shadowy clouds-to shimmer like flecks of precious metal.

"Sure," I thought, "gulls might mirror the brightness of dawn sometimes, but there's nothing special about them...they're only scavengers." Pondering the thought, a memory crept from beneath the covers of my mind.

*

We knew he was coming weeks before he arrived. "We" were seven female staff members that worked together in a school district resource office. The fact that our newly hired co-worker was male caused a rippling disturbance in the prevailing tedium.

"Mark my words: one of us will fall in love with him!" quipped our youngest associate, a thirty-something, heavy-set gal. Chuckling to myself, I remember thinking the idea was absurd-one I might have conjured when I was her age, ten years previously.

"In my opinion, someone silly enough to develop an attraction for a co-worker is nothing short of foolish," I countered. Sitting at the crowded break table, all heads turned in my direction. "My reservation with a man among us is that he'll squelch our conversation-the only thing that relieves the boredom around here!" The others nodded in agreement; the presence of a man might place a damper on our friendly female banter. We had no way of knowing, of course, but the newcomer's company would ultimately prove to spark, not only much needed stimulus to our dreary workplace, but critical life-changing events, as well.

The first time I saw Robert, I couldn't discern the color of his hair: chameleon-like, when reflecting the fluorescent lighting of our office, it appeared silver-at other times, it looked dull gray. Though stocky, he was smaller than most men. "Is he shorter or taller than me?" I wondered each time we stood toe to toe over the next three years.

Robert possessed an opportunistic air and, armed with a mischievous grin, brought an infusion of fun to an environment the rest of us had long since grown weary. He often shared jokes and stories, mostly about mind-boggling events that occurred during his Army days in Viet Nam and the ensuing care-free decade he'd spent beach combing seashores in far-flung places. Having tramped a lot of territory,

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