The past week has been a roller coaster of loss, grief, sadness, abandonment and anger. The ground beneath my feet doesn’t feel solid. I’m craving some sort of stability when nothing is stable at all. There are so many emotions, questions, and just things to do. Its all a bit overwhelming. Anyway, buckle up…this is going to ramble a bit.
I’ve reflected a lot on what went wrong. I’ve looked back to see the signs I missed or ignored that this was coming. I’ve questioned if there was anything I could have done to change the result. The last two months were tumultuous for sure, but if I’m honest I don’t think there was much that could have been done to change the end result. We might have done counseling for a few months or longer…but I’m not sure it would have made much of a difference.
There were signs even before the events of the last two months that she knew the decision she was going to make soon. That she was looking for an “out” even before this started. Even thinking back on the conversations we had over the past two months…there were things she said that make more sense in the context of how things ended. In that she was right when she said it wasn’t about what was going on that was the real issue. Perhaps the situation was just the “out” she was looking for. I obviously can’t know that for sure (especially since she’s no longer speaking to me directly), but that is the feeling I get. It doesn’t feel to me like she ever really came back from the struggles we had the previous summer. There seemed to be a lot of focus on the things that hadn’t worked and not on the things that did (at least that’s the impression I felt from the words and actions of the past few weeks). I hope that one day she’ll be able to remember the good things and not just a mistake that she made. I’d like to remember the good things and not think of our marriage as a mistake. It was something amazing that happened and something that came to an end. In the end…this will be better for both of us, A. has grown into a different understanding of what she wants from a relationship and unfortunately she was unable to talk to me about it before it was too late (again at least from my perspective).
I wasn’t perfect. I failed in many ways as a husband. There were many times I didn’t do my best (or even a token effort). Our relationship ending isn’t all on A. I definitely had a hand in creating the environment which allowed things to fall apart. I’m going to have to forgive myself for that. It’ll be part of the process of relearning how to love again.
Now we both have to deal with the aftermath of last weeks decision. The painful process of splitting up a household made more difficult by A’s refusal to communicate directly. Decisions about who gets what and how to handle exchanges while the emotions are all still very raw. The first of these exchanges will happen this Saturday and I’m incredibly anxious about it. She’ll be there with her mom and I’ve asked my dad to come up as well (because I don’t feel comfortable being there alone with them).
Finances are a big stress point. Divorce is expensive. Attorneys are expensive. With an already tight budget, I’ve got to squeeze more out of it. Ultimately I need to figure out ways to make more money soon. I’m not sure my current life is sustainable without it. This was something I had already planned on dedicating focus on. I picked a specific therapist because career and financial therapy was an area he specialized in. I had done this before I found out what was going on. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to focus on that as much yet…as my time with him has been focused on the relationship problems and then its ending.
There are other things as well…I’ve got to find a third person to move into the house. A’s decision to end things also has a very tangible effect on our housemate that moved in right around the time this all started. If we can’t find someone to fill A’s spot in the next month…our housemate will be responsible for having to pay more rent than she originally agreed to until we can. We have both failed in our housemate in that sense.
Logistics aside, there are the unexpected emotions. I don’t have any interest in going back to the relationship. I’m eager to finish this process as quickly and amicably as possible so we can both move on in our separate ways. But its the unexpected emotions that hit you in the face. Things like when you are told or find something that I would have immediately wanted to share with her. Or when I’ve woken up in the middle of the night and instinctively move my leg over to feel her touch that isn’t and won’t ever be there again. Yesterday, on the way home, I drove past the park we got married and tears welled up. These “certain small things / touch nerve-lines to the heart / and bring back with color and force / all that is utterly lost” as O’Donohue says in the poem in my previous post.
I told A. early on in our relationship…when I realized I was falling/had fallen in love with her that no matter what happens, part of me will always love her. She may have left two weeks ago, and officially left our marriage one week ago, but that part of me will remain with her. I hope you find what you are looking for A. I hope you achieve all your career dreams.
