Internet Relationships

He had been in a 30+ year relationship that had steadily deteriorated over many years.  There was counseling.  There were many discussions and agreements between he and his wife about what should be done to remedy the problems.  These agreements never worked out.

His parental role was eroded.  The children were acting out.  The marriage was in trouble.

He finally had to make a decision---should he remain in a bad marriage and stay financially stable? Or should he leave and experience life as he suspects God wants?  Shakespeare's line repeatedly came into his mind---  "To be or not to be...."

Finally, after years of introspection and agony, he saw a lawyer.  He filed for divorce.  The children were grown and they understood the situation, even if they were not happy about it.

He moved into a rental home.  He worked his job.  He came home to an empty home, but there was a peace about it that was comforting.  Months passed.  The divorce was final.  He was at peace.

One night he was feeling lonely.  He went on-line to a pen pal website.  He posted this ad:

"SWM, 55, seeks lady for pen pal".

The next day, there were 15 E-Mails from across the country, from women wanting to correspond.  He answered about three of them---the ones with the best, most well thought out messages.  The ones with proper grammar and punctuation.

He finally decided one of the three was really the most appealing to him, so he began writing to her daily.  He looked forward to her daily letters.  He was becoming attracted to her, and it felt good to know that it seemed she felt the same way about him.

After a couple of months, they exchanged photographs.  He spent the day fretting over whether her picture would be as attractive as he had pictured her in his mind.  He later found out that she had spent the day worrying over the same thing.

When he saw her picture, he was pleased to know that she was just as beautiful as he had imagined.

They decided to meet for dinner.  She brought pictures of her life to share.  He was falling in love.

And that, my friends, is how I met my wife.  We have been married almost 8 years, and I have been happier than I could ever have imagined.  All because I was lonely one evening and thought I wanted a pen pal.  I got a wife instead.