The Transition

"We drove up the snowy, winding road towards the cozy A-frame cabin." It was their first vacation date. It was a lovely blissful experience. Everything seemed perfect and it seemed as though the world had stopped!

But after a few years, Sammy and Linda entered a rough patch in their relationship. If Sammy said it was a nice weather day, Linda would say, “I guess you are ignoring the 10% chance of rain built into the forecast.” Similarly, when Linda purchased flowers from the local florist, Sammy would point out, “Why would you buy flowers before investing in a new table?"

Their relationship was the poster child for what one would call a toxic relationship. They did enjoy some precious moments, but those periods were now rare and fleeting. It was clear that they were growing further and further apart with each passing day.

The Beginning of the End

This process unfolded over several years until one day when Linda snapped and said, “I need to salvage whatever little remains of my sanity.” Sammy knew what this meant, and while he felt devastated hearing those words, the words injected a strong dose of reality into his soul.

Linda’s demeanor exhibited a combination of confidence and resilience. It was an emotion that caught Sammy off-guard and left him intimidated. He always felt that she was a follower and not a leader.

He wondered if he had pushed her too hard. He started second-guessing himself and wondering whether he should have read the tea leaves sooner and compromised to prevent it from reaching this level. But her determination made him realize that she was not about to reconsider her decision.

Linda said, “I will be leaving on a weekend getaway to a secluded cabin this afternoon and have scheduled a moving company to stop by tomorrow to pack my stuff and move it to a storage facility. That will give me enough time to search for my next apartment.”

Those words hit Sammy like a ton of bricks. There was no turning back from her decision. Sammy knew he would have to live with the fact that he did little to mend this broken relationship.

Linda drove 100 miles to her rented cabin. When she arrived, she looked through her crumpled paperwork to find the keycode to the door. As the door opened, she realized that this door symbolized a gateway to her future.

It was the first time in years that she experienced peace and tranquility in one place. She had been walking on eggshells for the last couple of years with Sammy. Suddenly she wouldn't have to fight over whether to open a bottle of white or red wine. To celebrate, she chose neither and opened a bottle of champagne to celebrate her newly found freedom!

As tears streamed down her face, she smiled and whispered, “freedom at last!” It would be the first but not the last time she would choose the things that made her happy rather than settle for the things that made others happy!

The cabin included a cozy fireplace with large windows surrounded by trees that preserved her much-needed privacy. The warm blanket gave her comfort and generated a feeling of security as she meticulously reviewed the beautiful décor of her cabin.

Linda could not believe how much peace she was feeling as she sipped her last sip of champagne before falling asleep!

She woke up to the beautiful chirping sounds of colorful birds outside her window. It allowed her to use senses that she never knew existed in her life. After a long body stretch as she pulled away her blanket, she took a deep breath and realized that those harmonious sounds symbolized the start of her life without Sammy.

She knew her future would be different, but it would be brighter!