So I pray.

I find myself struggling with his relationship with her more than I ever had before.
I tell myself that much of it is my hormones.
Pregnancy is already a time of emotional roller coasters and mood swings...but now those emotional roller coasters are fueled by a deep hurt and betrayal.

What I do know is that I have forgiven him for what has happened.
It did not happen by my own will but rather through God's good grace. 
Yet all that forgiveness has given me is leave to not be angry.


And I'm not.
But it still hurts.

Before, when we were separated all I had to do was let go and move on.
I didn't have to like it, I didn't have to work through it, I just had to relegate him to my memory and move foward.
But now that I am trying to rebuild a life with him that is no longer an option. At least a healthy and viable one.

I have to deal with the feelings sadness, betrayal, fear...

And I carry around a lot of fear nowadays.

When I moved down to Arizona there was a large part of me that didn't think I would be down here for too long.
I thought I would come down here and see for myself that our marriage was truly over.
I knew that if I landed on my face and heartbroken again-I would bear it and grow from it. Just like I did the first time.
Eventually I would be okay and there would no longer be any doubts.

But now, there is this hope that has blossomed within me--hope that maybe all is not lost.
But with that hope comes a crippling fear.

I am scared that he will leave me (and our child) again.
I am scared that he will never love me the way he should again.
I am scared that he will never get over her.
I am scared.

At the end of the day if the worst case scenario happens---I know that I will be heartbroken (all over again) but I also know that I will still heal.
That God still holds me and my life in his hands and that is the safest place for it.

So why do I do all of this?
Why do I hold on in the face of all of this fear?

Because I never stopped loving him.
I made vows before God and I meant them.
And love will hold on until it can't anymore.
So I am still holding on.

I try to remind myself that how I feel now won't be how I will always feel. 
And I know in my heart to leave this marriage would be wrong.

I think to myself -- what if I did leave and got married a second time and suffered something just as traumatizing in that marriage and had to work through forgiveness, love, trust, and moving on.

So why not hang on and do it now in this marriage--with this man that I love--that I still want to spend the rest of my life with.

So I pray (often) that God will do the rest of the work for me.
That He will heal my heart, heal my husband, and heal our marriage.
Because I am incapable of doing it myself.

Dreams for my life

Since last January I haven't really considered what I want my life to look like in the long run.
When I moved out of the home I shared with Menthol Man I could no longer think about the past (it hurt too much) or the future (that was so uncertain)... so I lived only in the present.
I had gone back to school and lived the life of a carefree single girl.
My life revolved around my own desires and my own solitary life.

But now being with Menthol Man for the last couple of months I find myself wondering, ultimately, what do I want for my life?

I fell in love with my life as a single girl.
Yes, my heart was still broken then but I loved the feeling of freedom.
I felt like I was blossoming into a woman I was always meant to be.
A woman I couldn't quite find or be as a wife.

But being that woman in exchange for being alone for the rest of my life is not what I want.
There has to be a balance.

I want a home...filled with a loving marriage and children.

When I am skyping with my Red and I watch her son, P (who I have been in love with since he was born) running around in the background chasing their golden retriever I find a deep yearning for that life.
I love that she has a husband who adores her, who will be home after work, who will share a dinner and evening with her.

A love she has built a real life with.


I miss that feeling and that life.
Menthol Man and I use to have a home like that in each other but that home was lost almost two years ago.
I have been alone for so long.

Yet.
I find hope that even though I don't know what the future may hold, or truly, who the future will hold...I just know that I will have that again someday.
I will not settle for less.
I will not give up on my future.
Or on a love that will last me my entire life.

This journey of my twenties has been difficult.
It has been filled with love, broken hearts, and an uncertain marriage...but it has made me realize fundamental truths about myself.

That I am strong.
I am resilient.
And that I am the kind of woman who when she loves, she loves with no holds barred.
And that is where much of my true strength lies.
But the bulk of my strength has always been because of God's grace.
It truly isn't my own strength but His that sees me through times of struggle and despair.

I know that someday I will be loved like that in return.

I have so little hope nowadays, my heart is burdened and heavy...
I have lost sight of the endgame.

But today I realized with a little help from my Red, MIL, and God...I realized that my life will not always be like this.

God has my life in the palm of His hand.
He never promised it would be easy but I now have renewed faith that eventually these dark days will end.

Eventually I will find my way out of the dark and the way back to a life filled with light and love.

The beautiful beautiful life I so yearn for.

"Things aren't nice anymore."

Dear God,

I feel like there is no one who understands what I am going through.
I try to put my feelings into pretty little words but it never seems like its enough.

I don't know how to help him God.
I don't know how to bring him back from the abyss.

I am so painfully aware of my own inadequacy and there is a part of me that knows I can't save him.
Only You can.
But I would be lying if I didn't say that sometimes I am not sure that will ever happen.
You can only heal a willing heart.
And Lord, he is so lost, I don't think he even wants to be healed.

I know my prayers are heard Lord.
I know You are here, with us, every step of the way.
But I still can't help but feel so incredibly alone.

Despite my doubt Lord.... please, save us.

Isolation.

I am tired of not having a job.
I am tired of not having a phone.
I am tired of not having a car.

I am tired of missing my old life.

I feel like I have nothing now...
I am just passing time... waiting for the next day to come.
And the next...
And the next...
Which is insane... because every day is the same.

I resent him.
Resent that I had to give up everything and other than his half love, I have nothing.

I find myself slipping...

This is not what I wanted.
This is not how I imagined my life to be.

I feel like I am going crazy.

Even though without him, I was heartbroken...
I was also alive.
I had purpose.
I had a plan.
I had a passion for my life.

Yes, I cried.
I felt like dying some nights as I laid in the dark...
I missed him so violently I thought I would never feel the release of that emotion...

But I feel like I have traded pain for... discontent.

A feeling of my life wasted... or at the very least--a month of my life wasted.

I feel holed up and isolated.
God, rescue me, break me out.

Can I not have him for the rest of my life and still have a life?

I wake up to ashes before dawn...

I woke up right before dawn arrived--and I laid there seeped in sorrow.
See, my love, I had this dream you loved me again.
(Not this half love you feed me with now.)

I forgot what it felt like to be loved that way by you.

I let that feeling slip from my memory... I let it disappear so I could survive the loss of you.
I cannot put into words the deep sorrow that chased my blood when I woke.

I was not alone in bed.
You were there.
But I had never felt so alone before.

I died.
Again.

But now, there is a keening wail that is taking up in me.
It is a song of sorrow and loss...
And it's making me wonder, my love, if I'd rather be alone that live with the ashes of what use to be.

Our love is not a Phoenix.

It will not rise again from the dead.
No matter how hard I may pray for it to do so.

Scar tissue

I feel lonely.
On the outside... I have nothing to complain about. 
I have settled into my new life in Phoenix with Menthol Man. I have begun to look for a job and familiarize myself with the city.

But there is an emptiness in my life...
I have forgiven Menthol Man but my forgiveness has not erased my pain and insecurities.
They tell me that once you reconcile a relationship you must forgive everything that has happened (or what is the point?).
But how do I let go?
How do I move on?

I suspect that won't happen until he is completely over "her".
He does not speak of her and even when I bring her up, he is quick to stop--because he knows the pain it causes me.
But she is a ghost between us, a ghost that does not allow me to love him as I once did, or trust him as I wish I could.

Ultimately, all I want is for both of us to be happy and at peace.
I tell myself that it has only been three days since we arrived in Phoenix, since things have settled down, and I want for too much too soon.
There is a part of me that knows if we are given the time, space, and grace from God--we can fall in love again.
That this marriage can survive... and perhaps become stronger and better...if I am able to be patient and trust God.

There was a time when I believed that we would always be together.
That he would always be my love.
Deeply tucked in my heart, I still believe it.
He is still my love.

But my scar tissue is thick and there is a big part of me that just wants to run away.
That does not want to be hurt again.
That is not quite sure that I am brave enough to try to restore my marriage.
To fight for my marriage and my love.

But then I think to myself, what choice do I have?
I love him and that in itself makes it so that I have no choice but to try.
To hope.
To trust that regardless of what happens--I will be strong enough to bear it.

Menthol Man asked me why I didn't fight for us.
Why I walked away all those months ago... (obviously it is more complicated than that, but that question does go to the much of the heart of the situation).

But this time, I will fight for us.
I will fight until there is no love between us... if that day is destined to come to pass.

But Lord, have mercy on me, because I am so very weary... and so very tired.

Put me back together... stitch by stitch.

He comes back tomorrow.

The last time I saw him I thought it would be for the very last time.
It killed me to watch him walk away when just hours before I had begged for him to stay.

And now, I am to go to that same airport... and welcome him home as a wife and lover.
Not a heartbroken and abandoned wife--

...and I don't know how.

I don't know how to let go of the past.
All of my insecurities, hurt, and fears have been healing... but they aren't anywhere near being healed.
I would be lying if I didn't say I was petrified of being hurt by him again.

I loved him the only way I knew how.
Completely.
Without any reservations.
Without any conditions.
I loved the man he was.
I loved the man he had become.
And I loved the man who I saw glimmers of him becoming.


That is the only way I know how to love.


But I can't love him like that now.
I don't know if I ever will.
He thinks I will.
But he always just thinks about himself and his heartache.
I am not saying that he isn't aware of how I feel... or how I felt.
But he doesn't think about what he has really done to me.
Or what trying to work this out is costing me.

So why do I do it?
Why bother?
I don't know.
Because I loved him so much.
And I don't know how to walk away... at least not yet.

I want to love him again.
I want to be loved by him again.

I saw the death of our marriage, hopes, and our dreams for the future.
I saw the death of our children that I thought would never come to pass.

Now, I pray for a resurrection.
And if that isn't to happen... then I pray that my heart will find a way to let go over the next 365 days.

Do you know what your fate is?

I am not certain I will ever be able to forgive him.
I always knew when we got married that if Menthol Man ever stepped outside of our marriage... it would have to be over for me.
I know myself well enough to know that even if I wanted to forgive him, I may not ever be able to.
And why waste more time and create more heartache?

So now, the one place I never wanted to be is the one place I am living.

This is not what I wanted for myself.
(Nor for him.)
I never wanted to be in a marriage where I had images of my husband with another woman.
Loving her.
Making love to her.
Crying over her.
Begging and pleading for her love.
Being heartbroken over her.


All the while I was so broken for him.

And now, "...[he's] back from outer space..." asking for another chance.
I knew, I couldn't say no.
I would wonder "...what if" for the rest of my life.
But I also don't know if I can ever forgive him.
Or... maybe more accurately, move on.

The ironic thing is he never asked me to forgive him.
He has never once took me by the face and said, "I'm sorry. I made a mistake. I love you. Choose me. Choose our life. Forgive me."


How do you try to forgive someone who never asked for forgiveness.
Who is still heartbroken over the other girl?
How do you not feel like you're second place?

But how do you walk away?

I just tell myself that at the end of the 365 days things will either be better or they won't.
I will either want to be in this or I won't.

I just hope that this isn't going to cost me more than I am willing to pay.

...when I think about all of these things--there is a part of me that just wants to go back.
Back before he asked me to work on our marriage.
Back when I had a bright future in front of me... when I believed there was this amazing man out there waiting for me.
Who would love the shit out of me.
Who I wouldn't be "second place" to.

Who couldn't live without me.
Someone who would be broken if I was ever not in his life.

And now I am afraid I will never get that chance.
That I will never find him.
Because how can Menthol Man be that man after everything he has put me through?

Did I fall in love with the wrong man?

The story of us will be ending soon

I am blessed more than I ever realized I was (despite the fact that I don't always feel that way).

I wasted so much time and energy loving someone who was never meant to be mine. Who is not worth the unconditional love I have to offer.

I’ve cried, yelled, mourned, bargained, begged… I’ve done everything that a woman who has loved deeply does when trying to save a lost love.

But now, it’s a new day.

I’d be lying if I were to pretend like everything is kosher.

The truth is I am a little worse for wear but I am okay.

I am moving on, even if I don’t want to--I’ve made the decision and that was something I had never honestly done before.

I waited all these months for something inside of me to change… a hope that something passively would occur in my heart…

But now I realize that is not how I will get over Menthol Man.
That is not how I will start to let go.

I have to make the decision.

Changing my phone number, email addresses—were the first step.

The next step will be to file divorce papers.

And then the rest will sort itself out.

I have learned a lot over these last five months about my body.

I have learned I get the best results when I force my body to do things that it doesn’t want to do.

And I think that’s how it will be with my heart.

I have to force myself to do things I never thought my heart would be capable of bearing.

I never thought I’d truly be able to file divorce papers but now I know I have no choice.

I know I have to cut off all communication despite how I don’t want to.

I have to give myself the time and space to let myself get to the other side of love…which is indifference.

To my real love, whoever you are, wherever you are, I am so sorry it’s taking me so long to let him go.

I was wrong about him.
I thought he was you.

I promise that someday I will be better.

Someday we will find each other…

I forgot.

I knew this was going to be hard.
I forgot how hard missing you could be.
Wanting to taste your kiss, feel your arms, watch your chest rise and sink...

I forgot how hard missing you could be.

I forgot how to fill my life without you... or maybe I forgot how full my life was with you.
I wish I had never experienced the weight of your arm on my stomach as we slept intertwined.
I wish I had never experienced the brush of your lips on my forehead as you thought I slept...
I wish I had never remembered what it felt like to have you look into my eyes and tell me, "I love you."
I wish I hadn't been reminded of what it felt like to watch you walk away... and to remember that my love was never enough.

So now here I am... running hard and fast--trying to put distance between you, your memory, and me.
The pain I feel now is not as it was.
It is not intense and overwhelming.
Instead it is calm, quiet, and hollowing.
It reminds me constantly that you are not near, that you do not love me... enough.
But I also tell myself that despite any desire I might have had, perhaps, you were never meant to be mine.
And to hold onto something that was never mine is unnatural.
Letting go takes time, it takes effort, it takes release....
I know it won't happen over night.
But I am no longer willing to hold onto someone who doesn't want to be held onto.
I am no longer willing to hope for someone who doesn't have hope.
I am no longer willing to be Menthol Man's soft place to land.

Now, I need to be my own soft place to land.
Now, I need to hold onto myself.
Now, I need to heal... because despite it all--I know in my heart that all this pain and grief has a reason to it even if I can't see it right now.
And the one thing I know for sure is that I will love again.
And someday I will find the one who was always mine.