No one would argue that divorce is hard, but fortunately, it’s not the end of everything. Sometimes it’s the beginning of the most unpredictable part of life. We put together 16 stories where a breakup became a step into a new chapter in life.
To celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary with my husband, we went to an expensive restaurant. As he was cutting the fish, he calmly said, “I’m leaving. I’ve fallen in love with someone else.” He finished his meal, nodded to me, and left, while I was glued to my chair, crying.
Suddenly, I looked down and started laughing through tears — there was a note with a phone number, saying, “Call me.” It felt like a scene from some silly movie. But it was like something clicked inside me: I crumpled the note, threw it in my pocket, and ran out of the restaurant.
I went through the divorce with a psychologist, and one of my small, yet personal reassurances was that very note. I told myself, “Here you were sitting and crying because a man left you, and another one decided to make a move right away. You’ve still got it!”
And then I actually called that number. The man remembered me with difficulty but invited me on a date. Nothing clicked, there was no continuation, but it felt like a dam broke: I started getting out, registered on a dating site, went on dates.
My ex remarried right after the divorce, and I don’t have a family yet, but over time, I am insanely grateful to fate for steering me away from someone who wasn’t my person.
I’m 50 years old. I lived with my second husband for 24 years and divorced because I realized I didn’t want to grow old with this person. And 2 years ago, I met a wonderful man who said he had waited for me all his life. It’s now been a year since we got married, and I moved in with him.
We divorced after 13 years of marriage. I became more active in my work. After all, I’m paying for the apartment on my own, and I have more time. As a result, I lost a little weight, bought some new clothes, got a new haircut.
And then, to my surprise, I was riding my new bike, and suddenly my ex caught up with me saying, “Miss, can I ask you out?” I took off my sunglasses and said, “Seriously?” He turned pale, nearly fell off his bike.
