Next month will mark the 14th anniversary of when my wife of 29 years and 4 months decided she no longer wanted to be married. She simply preferred to be on her own.
She handed me a piece of paper with her lawyer's contact information and told me to find a lawyer of my own.
So much for, "for better or worse".
So much for, "until death do us part".
So much for, "Love is patient, love is kind,...love never fails".
So much for family life.
So much for growing old together with a trusted friend that knows you like no other. Trust...a word I may never be able to trust again.
Move on? I've tried. A couple times. But as the song goes, 'you can't make old friends'. As a child my birth mother betrayed me and instilled in me the determination to find a forever partner. An until-death-do-us-part partner. Someone to celebrate a 50th and 60th anniversary with... but I failed. And now that just isn't possible. No amount of wanting to move on can change that.
A simple piece of paper and my life, my future, as I had hoped and planned, was gone forever.
Amazing the power one little piece of paper can yield...at least Jesus was betrayed with a kiss.