Work in Progress Part I

It was icy driving conditions on the drive home. I made a mental note to myself to never again listen to New Age music in the car. It made me introspective, then usually depressed. Much safer to listen to some rock station or the news, anything with words that were not my own. I replayed the conversation one more time so I could fully enjoy the feeling in the pit of my stomach. A glass of mediocre Merlot, definitely not worth the $7.50 with tip, had loosened my tongue a bit. Another mental note, either stay away from the bar or learn to be a quiet drinker when you’re with coworkers.

I had been watching my former boyfriend walk away after an awkward conversation when I turned to Linda. “You know we broke up in December.”

“No, you’re KIDDING!” She had put on a surprised and comforting face almost in time to hide the excitement from getting fresh gossip. “You two were together for so long!”

“It was two years plus a few months. It was… amicable. Things were just never going to happen between us.” I had taken another sip and muttered into my wine glass, “Besides, I probably would have been a terrible wife for him.”

I wished I could have seen Linda’s particular expression, but the edge of the glass had obscured the view. “Well, I think he would have been a perfect husband for you! What a shame.”

Thanks. The words kept zinging between my ears as I continued my drive. At the time of that conversation, I had actually nodded and agreed wholeheartedly at the time I had heard Linda’s words. Even if they weren’t true, they were close enough to nip at me. There had more than a few times I had heard something along those lines, even from people I liked much more than Linda.

Maybe Linda’s more right than she realized. Maybe I would be a horrid wife to anyone. Maybe there’s an obvious reason I’m still unmarried at this point of my life. Maybe...