Picking up where i left off nearly 4 months ago, i will continue my life story with Chapter 3. After 20 years of marriage to a very troubled, alcoholic man i believed that God had released me from my vows to him and we divorced. At the time of the divorce i discovered that he had also been unfaithful to me over the years. At the time i discovered this fact, it really didn't matter any more; my heart was cold toward him. He left and there i was ~ starting over. i was nearly 39 years old with 3 almost grown daughters and a toddler son. My oldest daughter was taking a year off from college to work and was living in another city with my sister's family while she worked as a nanny and my second daughter had just graduated from high school, taken a job in a nearby town and gotten an apartment. My youngest daughter was entering her senior year of high school and my son was 2 1/2 years old. i was scared to death. i had no job skills and had only worked outside the home for 3 years when the girls were much younger. i did not want to put my son in daycare so i decided to become the daycare. i became licensed and took several little ones into my home during the day. It was hectic and crazy at times, but i really enjoyed it. i was able to earn a bit of money and stay home with my son. i was earning "a bit" of money and looking back on that year i have no idea how i paid the bills, bought groceries, etc but i did. God took good care of us as i received no child support or help from my husband in any way. He took his newest girlfriend and left the state and we were not to hear a word from him for many years.
So, to continue Chapter 3, there was a family who lived down the street who had 2 children about the same ages as my 3 girls. The kids had been fast friends but there was no relationship between the parents. After my husband left, the man from down the street spoke to me one day while i was taking my son for a walk in the stroller. He told me that his wife had left him a while ago. That was news to me. He started calling, taking me out for a coke, etc. i knew him ~ or thought i did~ as we had been neighbors for 14 years. i was divorced and he began courting me in earnest. There were a few "quirky" things about him but nothing that raised a big red flag. Frankly, i was so afraid that i could not take care of my family and as he appeared to be a good provider and all around nice guy i accepted when he proposed marriage 6 months later. (Now i know that things happened way too fast ~ i needed more time to process being alone, but fear took over.) Both of us being Christians, we prayed about our situation and i truly sought God's direction in the matter. He said he did too, and i have no reason to doubt him.
Over the next 24 years he and i shared a life and raised my son whom he adopted. We had moved to another state to make a fresh start. In the meantime, the 6 children finished growing up, going to college, marrying, starting a family and presenting us with 11 grandchildren all told. My oldest daughter and her family had moved half of a continent away to a beautiful area of the country and they wanted us to come and move near them. After 3 years of trying to sell our house, it finally happened. We sold our house, packed up all of our worldly good and moved halfway across the country to begin our retirement years.
To be continued...
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