Happy divorce-aversary to me!
My divorce was finalized two years ago today, meaning that I’ve officially been divorced longer than I was married. It’s hard to look back on that time and remember the choices that were made, the hurts that were inflicted, and the relationships irreparably broken – but all of those things have contributed to where I am now and while I wish I could undo some things that happened between me and people now lost to me, I am happy to be where I am today, sitting at my kitchen table working on a conference paper and nursing an ear infection.
I remember the tremendous amount of relief and sadness I felt walking out of that courtroom two years ago. My lawyer shook my hand and offered his congratulations, saying I was free to get married that very afternoon if I wanted to, though he advised against it. I’ve been feeling lately as if grad school was like a divorce – good god, I just want to be done with it, even though I know I’ve committed to staying on for four more years. It’s such a long and drawn out process, and I’ll be glad to be done with it, whenever that is.
I walked out of that courthouse positively glowing, jaded about a lot of things, but happy to be starting a new chapter of my life. I feel all those things all the time – about relationships, about school, about work, etc.
I promised a long time ago that I wouldn’t write about my ex in any sort of public way, and I want to hold to that promise, but I also want him to know that I wish him nothing but the best in life and in love. There are still lingering financial things that we’re dealing with, and I hope we can resolve them soon so that we can truly go our separate ways. He was a good man – we just weren’t good together.