Well, today our 20 year marriage ended in courtroom 2-D.

To be honest, it was surreal. When we came to this decision months ago, I felt like the world had ended. In truth, I was afraid of what life would look like now without you. But now, standing here, it seems much more survivable. I read a German proverb once that said, "Fear makes the wolf bigger than he is." And I was truly afraid of life without you. You have been the one constant person in my life for so long. In fact, longer than any other person on earth. You are the voice in my head. I owe you so much for these last 20 years. So I thought I'd let you know a few things on this first day of our new relationship. I know it's weird writing this to you on this day, but life speeds by and there is simply no time to leave the right words unspoken. So allow me to share a few of my thoughts and feelings from today with you...

• You deserve an award for making it 20 years with a man like me. We both know I'm not easy to love. I'm beyond driven, don't sleep much, make jokes in every situation, and you could always count on me to misbehave. I have taken more then my fair share of risks over our years together. That's the problem with being married to a person who pursues dreams. You get dragged into adventures you never signed up for. I realized too late that many of my dreams became nightmare situations for you. My passions have always driven me. And that my heart is all about pursuing new things and bold plans. In many ways, my life is like a room full of dynamite... and I sit in that room playing with matches far too often. But hang in there... you were always ready with your southern charm and classy manners to correct my brash nature and follow me into another venture. I realize now that even though we had some real success, it took a toll on those I loved. For that I am truly sorry.

• Statistically, this was a good decision. We both know that 50 percent of marriages end in divorce... but the other 50 percent end in DEATH! So we really dodged a bullet there :-)

• You are an AWESOME mom. Your kindness and love for our children is, perhaps, the single most beautiful thing about you. You will never fully know how much I studied your example while we raised these kiddos. You somehow breathe out love and they breathe it in.

• I want you to be happy. You deserve to be happy. Being married and also "in ministry" is often a nightmare. The pressures of having a good marriage makes having an authentic one a real struggle. Honestly, I'm happy you don't have to deal with that anymore. For me, I know this is what I must do with my life. But you deserve a much more peaceful life and I'm excited you get that.

• For the record, I would have married you all over again... even if I knew it would end like this. Yes, we have three amazing kids out of this, but even if there was no Chloe, Titus, and Silas... I still would have picked you. I'm a better and different person today because of you. I cannot imagine going through life without any real time with you.

• You need to stay off WebMD. Headaches are rarely brain cancer. I mean it. It's SUPER rare! You can be stubborn and ornery. People like you live longer than everyone you know. Let death be a surprise when it arrives. Enjoy the many years you have in front of you.

• You can't get me to stop loving you. I honestly tried to convince my heart to hate you for a while. It didn't take. You're just too good of a person. The one thing that surprised me about our desperation was how easy it was to just be friends again. For us, that's where "we" started. And so I'm happy that that's where we are ending. As great friends. I love that we still talk about our kids, life, plans, movies, music, and what famous person died. It feels normal to me.



• I'll always be here to help you in any way you need. I love that you're going to school and exploring new avenues for your journey through life. I'm always going to be around in case you need help... because I'm a fan. Always will be.

• If our divorce has taught me one thing it's this: if I had known it was going to end after 20 years, I would have absolutely done more sit-ups. Dating again is going to be interesting. But my friend signed me up for something called Grindr so I'm sure I'll have a lot of dates soon.

• I'm not stupid. I know a woman like you will not be alone long. You are too easy to love. And I want you to know that I will be a fan of whomever you choose to love again. I will, no doubt, share embarrassing stories about you with them whenever I can. But that's to be expected because I can be a real tool!

I guess that sums up most of it. I have thought about this day a lot as it approached. And all I knew was I wanted to end "us" well. Sounds stupid I guess... to want to end our marriage in a "good way." But I keep thinking back to that old movie The Lion in Winter. When the sons, in the dungeon, think they hear Henry coming down the stairs to kill them.

Richard says,"He's here. He'll get no satisfaction out of us. Don't let him see you beg...Take it like a man!

Geoffrey replied, "You fool! As if the way one falls down matters!"

Richard replied, "Well, when the fall is all that's left, it matters a great deal."

It was an honor to have you for 20 years. It will be my privilege to be a close friend the rest of your life.

So I will end this with a few words with from the great theologian Cyndi Lauper.

"If you're lost you can look -- and you will find me

Time after time

If you fall I will catch you --

I'll be waiting

Time after time"

With all my heart,

Michael

___________________

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