divorced

Sometimes a good divorce is better than a bad marriage.

Finally... a Win
I knew it was a gamble when I stepped to the window. Just like all my other gambles, none of which worked out. Not one business, not one scheme, nothing. All I wanted, all I ever wanted was to be able to treat my girls like they should be treated. My beautiful wife, and the smaller version of her that calls me Dad. They need this even more than I do.
By Jay Marentay5 years ago in Families
A Beeautiful Legacy
By every considerable societal measure, the Jefferson family had it all, the perfect life. They truly were the picture-perfect image of the upper-middle class family, living in a small suburban town with all the luxuries and conveniences one could wish for. They lived in a beautiful million-dollar home. He drove a Tesla. She drove a Lexus. The lawn was perfectly manicured and the whole family was always dressed in the latest of fashion. However, as we all know, while pictures may be worth a thousand words, a book shouldn’t be judged by its cover. Unfortunately, today’s society is under the impression that humans are pictures rather than a collection of books, each 365 days long and growing by day. The Jefferson’s family had attained a collection of 15 of those books and while they may appear to be filled with fairy tales to someone looking in, most were filled with pages of pain, suffering, heartbreak, betrayal, resentment and some even with hate. That’s not to say that there weren’t chapters of joy, happiness, and love. Mrs. Jefferson could be quoted saying; “Life’s like a roller coaster, sometimes you feel like you’re on top of the world, other times you feel like you’re going to throw up. However, the ride doesn’t stop, it doesn’t wait for anyone, it just keeps going. So, when you feel like you’ve hit rock bottom, remember it’s about to go up.” She was an optimist like that.
By Bozana Murray5 years ago in Families
My best friend and I are separating.
It was after midnight, two days before my birthday, and I was cradling our almost-one year old in bed when it felt like my world imploded. That day, I was exhausted but decided to push through it so that my husband and I could watch a movie that evening after the kids went to bed. It was our usual horror movie chance pick and it ended up being pretty good. As the movie ended, our baby began to stir so I decided to rock him back to sleep in our room. I was happy that we had made time for each other. Earlier that day, my husband and I had gotten into a minor argument. He was growing more distant and I decided to approach him with how I was feeling because I couldn’t ignore it any longer. Ultimately, he said he wasn’t doing it intentionally and was just trying to have some space to get through his emotions. I understood. The year was hard for both of us. On top of covid and the quarantine, we both lost a parent at the beginning of the year so naturally we would be distant and in our feelings right? Fast forward to after the movie, I was cradling our son when he quietly came in the room and sat at the edge of the bed. I knew something was wrong so I waited for him to begin speaking. That’s when he opened up with those dreaded words, the words that still sting months later.
By Nicole K5 years ago in Families
The Dissolution
We sat down with the death certificates, our phones, the stack of mail, and their last notebooks. Late afternoon in the living room- if our parents had been there we would’ve had a round of various gin drinks, Dad briefly raising his eyes from his screen volunteering to shake. What he meant was that we’d fuck up his drink, otherwise. Gratefully however one whiskey neat and a beer were at hand; we were cheaply rewarded for shepherding to the door the few straggling visitors and abandoning the plattered remains of puckering hand sandwiches and curling celery sticks.
By Golly Doyle5 years ago in Families
To My Wife's Future Husband
Dear Sir, I am writing you today so that I might help you in your future life with a woman whom I have loved deeper than anything I have ever experienced before in my life. My trials, my mistakes, her mistakes, our choices, good and bad, have given me a unique perspective that might help you be everything to her that she deserves.
By Bryan Johnson5 years ago in Families
The Chimney
It was a cold drizzle — stark gray skies undulating with silver, white and pewter clouds. The wet seeped through the skin, through the bones, and reminded one of how dismal a day could be, how life could be, at times. Dark and cold and soul permeating.
By Catherine Brooks5 years ago in Families
Suicide Gone Wrong
Realizing the local police were not going to do anything about the child pornography I had turned in, I next turned to the Department of Internal Affairs at the sheriff's office. I explained to them what I had found and that my ex was claiming I set him up, but that I didn't set him up, and I was genuinely concerned for my children's safety.
By Adrienne Huggins5 years ago in Families
A Mother-Daughter Bond
Plink, plink, plink. The silence in the room is cut by the constantly drip of water from the ceiling. If I listen close enough, I can match the rhythm of my breathing to the sound. The water, like everything in this house, is a result of neglect.
By Madison Bishop5 years ago in Families
The Calling Card
The Calling Card What is it that compels a mistress to leave behind clues when in the marital home of her lover? Is it the same compulsion that drives girls in their teens to leave their mark on bathroom stalls? Or those that desecrate monuments and other cherished landmarks with graffiti? Is leaving clues for an unsuspecting spouse the Holy Grail of, “I was here?”
By Karen Skirten5 years ago in Families
You Can't Tame A Lion
When I was married to my now ex husband, he used to jokingly say he wanted to “tame me,” to “take the wildness out of me.” I’d laugh along with him, but as we all know, in every joke there’s at least a grain of truth, and I knew what he meant. He loved many things about me, my passion, my generosity, my intelligence, but he could do without the boldness, my opinionated nature and the attention that seemed to follow me everywhere.
By Misty Rae5 years ago in Families
Ending a Marriage
Right now I look around this house at a large painting left drying on the coffee table, a smaller hand-drawn coloring beside it. My 4 year old’s scribbles and paint strokes. She woke up this morning hoping to paint something. I found her hiding in her closet painting the trash she could find (a toilet paper roll, a ripped piece of cardboard, and some sort of plastic container from one of her previous art sets). As a firm believer in creative outlets, I grabbed a large piece of an old Amazon box and let her have at it. In the end she was covered in paint and there were even a few drops splashed across her clothes. I could walk through the kitchen right now and admire the drops of royal purple on the linoleum I forgot to wipe up afterward.
By Lo Jaimes5 years ago in Families
Positive Parenting After Divorce
After adults divorce or separate, they often engage in 'get even' tactics against each other with children becoming objects of manipulation and revenge. Little thought is given to the effect of their behavior on a child's emotions or what their son(s) or daughter(s) are being deprived of. The sense of betrayal and anger spills over with the desire to strike back becoming paramount. Parent's reactions become driven by raw emotion rather than rational thought and children are caught in the crossfire. Acts of revenge have become increasingly volatile in the last decade and it has become commonplace to see or read about a murder or murder/suicide of the custodial parent or the children they had together.
By Jerrie DeRose5 years ago in Families