A few years ago, my book club read Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert’s Oprah pick memoir which would go on to become a bible for post divorce women of a certain age. As I read and discussed this tell all, I suspected I’d one day join the ranks. I just didn’t know how soon.
By the time the trailer was being shown in the theaters and Julia Roberts began her extended promo spots on Oprah, I would be in midst of divorce.
Divorce. The legal dissolution of a marriage. By the time the lawyers are called in, the relationship is long past resuscitation You wouldn’t dream of building a skyscraper on a bed of sand. A marriage without love or intimacy can’t survive the high tide.
Sure, we all shed some tears at the breakup of what was or what we expected it to be. Some marriages dissolve midstream. Others never make it strongly out of the starting gate.
But when you start filing single tax returns, you also are given a shot at a new journey with an unknown destination. Few of us are able to swing months abroad like Elizabeth Gilbert did. If we do experience Eat, Pray, Love, it generally involves Ben & Jerry’s, J-Date, and a spectacular pair of stilettos. But, we do get the chance to get reacquainted with who we were and who we want to be.
In the fourteen months since realizing my long suffering marriage had a DNR, I’ve time traveled back to the girl I once was. No, I haven’t started lifting clothes from my teenage daughter’s closet or dating guys in their 20s. But, I have kick started my writing career And I’m comfortable as the independent, self-confident girl I used to be.
So, my journey hasn’t taken me to Italy, an ashram in India, and a remote Balinese village. But I’ve reconnected with friends from my “previous” life, met some fascinating people, and had a few really good dates. I don’t really know where I’ll end up but I’m excited about taking you along for the ride!
By the way, as I write this, I am in Paris, the most romantic city in the world...
Until then…
The Stiletto Clad Divorcee
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