Foreword<br >t~y~-~ Being out of town with a new show has often been a<br > ，~-~ lonely experience for me: but going on the road with<br > ~-oL~ Dick for the pre-Broadway tour of Rex， in the late<br >winter of 1976， gave me thinking time. Time to bring the many<br >parts of my life into focus--and to look at the whole in perspec-<br >tive. Away from New York， freed from the demands of daily<br >routine， untempted by invitations to do things with loved and<br >loving friends， I have been able to revisit my past and work on<br >this book.<br > I ve loved my life. I ve played that game of trying to imagine<br >a life I would have preferred， but I ve never found anyone<br >whose life I d trade for my own. It has had its share of pain and<br >worry， of serious illness and， at times， troubling periods of<br >strained relations with children. And with all of Dick s success，<br >he has had his share of failures. Even when reviews are not<br >personal or savage， they are public and they do hurt. He accepts<br >them with as much grace as he accepts the accolades--just as he<br >has never allowed self-pity to have any part in his make-up. The<br >failures， like his three life-threatening illnesses， merely reinforce<br >his strength and determination to overcome the challenges.<br > It has not been easy to be married to a living legend， but<br >having found a way to use my own mind， I m proud to be<br >xi<br ><br >"