The
Divorce
~~~~***~~~~
When I got home that night as my wife served
dinner, I held her hand and said, "I've got
something to tell you." She sat down and ate
quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Suddenly I didn't know how to open my mouth. But
I had to let her know what I was thinking. "I
want a divorce." I raised the topic calmly.
She didn't seem to be annoyed by my words,
instead she asked me softly, "Why?" I avoided
her question. This made her angry. She threw
away the chopsticks and shouted at me, "you are
not a man!" That night, we didn't talk to each
other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to
find out what had happened to our marriage. But
I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer,
she had lost my heart to a lovely girl called
Dew.
I didn't love her anymore.. I just pitied her!
With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce
agreement which stated that she could own our
house, our car, and 30% stake of my company. She
glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The
woman who had spent ten years of her life with
me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her
wasted time, resources and energy but I could
not take back what I had said for I loved Dew so
dearly. Finally she cried loudly in front of me,
which was what I had expected to see. To me her
cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of
divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks
seemed to be firmer and clearer now.
The next day, I came back home very late and
found her writing something at the table. I
didn't have supper but went straight to sleep
and fell asleep very fast because I was tired
after an eventful day with Dew. When I woke up,
she was still there at the table writing. I just
did not care so I turned over and was asleep
again.
In the morning she presented her divorce
conditions: she didn't want anything from me,
but needed a month's notice before the divorce.
She requested that in that one month we both
struggle to live as normal a life as possible.
Her reasons were simple: our son had his exams
in a months time and she didn't want to disrupt
him with our broken marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something
more, she asked me to recall how I had carried
her into out bridal room on our wedding day. She
requested that everyday for the month's duration
I carry her out of our bedroom to the front door
ever morning. I thought she was going crazy.
Just to make our last days together bearable I
accepted her odd request.
I told Dew about my wife's divorce conditions.
She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd.
"No matter what tricks she applies, she has to
face the divorce," she said scornfully.
My wife and I hadn't had any body contact since
my divorce intention was explicitly expressed.
So when I carried her out on the first day, we
both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us,
daddy is holding mummy in his arms. His words
brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to
the sitting room, then to the door, I walked
over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed
her eyes and said softly, don't tell our son
about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat
upset. I put her down outside the door. She went
to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to
the office.
On the second day, both of us acted much more
easily. She leaned on my chest.. I could smell
the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I
hadn't looked at this woman carefully for a long
time. I realized she was not young any more.
There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair
was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on
her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to
her.
On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt
a sense of intimacy returning. This was the
woman who had given ten years of her life to me.
On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our
sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn't
tell Dew about this. It became easier to carry
her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the
everyday work-out made me stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She
tried on quite a few dresses but could not find
a suitable one. Then she sighed, "all my dresses
have grown bigger." I suddenly realized that she
had grown so thin, that was the reason why I
could carry her more easily. Suddenly it hit
me.....she had buried so much pain and
bitterness in her heart. Subconsciously I
reached out and touched her head.
Our son came in at the moment and said, "Dad,
it's time to carry mum out." To him, seeing his
father carrying his mother out had become an
essential part of his life. My wife gestured to
our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I
turned my face away because I was afraid I might
change my mind at this last minute. I then held
her in my arms, walking from the bedroom,
through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her
hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I
held her body tightly, it was just like our
wedding day. But her much lighter weight
made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in
my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had
gone to school. I held her tightly and said, "I
hadn't noticed that our life lacked intimacy."
I drove to office... jumped out of the car
swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid
any delay would make me change my mind... I
walked upstairs. Dew opened the door and I said
to her, "Sorry, Dew,
I do not want the divorce
anymore."
She looked at me, astonished . Then touched my
forehead. "Do you have a fever?" She said. I
moved her hand off my head. "Sorry, Dew," I
said, "I won't divorce. My marriage life was
boring probably because she and I didn't value
the details of our lives, not because we didn't
love each other any more. Now I realize that
since I carried her into my home on our wedding
day I am supposed to hold her until death do us
part." Dew seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave
me a loud slap and then slammed the door and
burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove
away.
At the florist shop on the way, I ordered a
bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl
asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and
wrote, "I'll carry you out every morning until
death do us part."
The small details of your lives are what really
matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion,
the car, property, the money in the bank, blah..
blah.. blah. These create an environment
conducive for happiness but cannot give
happiness in themselves. So find time to be your
spouse's friend and do those little things for
each other that build intimacy. Do have a real
happy marriage!
~~~~***~~~~
- Author unknown -
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