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Yes, You Can Miss Someone You’ve Never Met
When Your Soul Recognizes Someone Before You Do
When I was married, I never cheated, even though the same couldn’t be said about my now ex.
Each night after another argument where he made sure to abuse me, my parents, and my mental state, or threatened me outright, I’d retreat to my room and cry. Sometimes, he wouldn’t even allow me that time alone.
One evening, after another particularly nasty spat, I turned on the TV to distract myself. It was showing an interview with an actor and his new wife, both divorcees, both having gone through bitter and very public splits. What she said stuck with me: When she was in her first abusive marriage, she’d seen that same actor speak and thought, “I wish I had a husband like him — so caring and family-oriented.”
I wondered then — could good men like that exist? Because if they did, I sure hadn’t run into any, romantically speaking.
My marriage was arranged when I was in my early 20s. I had limited knowledge of dating as I come from a strict and conservative culture.
When that nightmare was over, it wasn’t the physical intimacy I was looking for. In fact, that was the last thing on my mind after my abusive marriage.
I wanted an emotional…
