DEAR ABBY: I'm a widowed 48-year-old grandmother raising three beautiful grandchildren, who has been lucky enough to find a really special man I'll call "Dale."
I have had four major relationships in my life. The last two have ended with their deaths. The first -- my late husband -- died in a work-related car accident. The second died of an aortic aneurysm.
Dale has proposed marriage and I said yes; however, my doubts are linked to the adage, "It comes in threes," and I'm afraid I'll lose him too. If this seems silly, I'm sorry. I loved both of the men who died, and after the last one I swore never to love like this again. However, God says, "Never say never." Can you help me? -- GUN-SHY IN PHOENIX
DEAR GUN-SHY: Consider this: The only thing sillier than bowing to your superstitions would be to sacrifice a mutual love out of fear. You can't change what happened in the past, but if you think positive and concentrate on the present, the future will take care of itself. In a sense, we all "place our bets and take our chances" because in life there are no guarantees. The secret is to think positive.