When my ex-husband and I were separated but not yet divorced, the date of our wedding anniversary became problematic for me. It wasn’t our anniversary any more in spiritual terms: We’d cut the ties between us and knew that we weren’t going to stay married. Yet in another sense, it was still our anniversary, and it always will be. We got married on May 28th, and that would never change. It was a very special date in my life for a long time.
When I brought this issue to my friends on Facebook, a powerful discussion came forth. What they helped me realize is that there were things from our former relationship that were still worth celebrating, most importantly, our three living children whom we continue to raise together. We share custody equally along with making joint medical, education, and other important decisions about our children. My ex-husband and I still very much have a relationship that centers around our children, one that legally will continue for another 6+ years and probably beyond.
In light of our co-parenting relationship, my friends dubbed May 28th “Co-Parenting Day,” a far more positive statement than “our former anniversary.” Each year on this day, rather than mourning what used to be between us, I celebrate the children we have raised successfully first as a couple and then as divorced individuals. I am eternally grateful to my friends for helping me create this new celebration, one that reminds me of the good things that came from and continue to come from my partnership with my ex-husband.
Happy Co-Parenting Day!
© 2015 Elizabeth Galen, Ph.D., Green Heart Guidance, LLC
When I brought this issue to my friends on Facebook, a powerful discussion came forth. What they helped me realize is that there were things from our former relationship that were still worth celebrating, most importantly, our three living children whom we continue to raise together. We share custody equally along with making joint medical, education, and other important decisions about our children. My ex-husband and I still very much have a relationship that centers around our children, one that legally will continue for another 6+ years and probably beyond.
In light of our co-parenting relationship, my friends dubbed May 28th “Co-Parenting Day,” a far more positive statement than “our former anniversary.” Each year on this day, rather than mourning what used to be between us, I celebrate the children we have raised successfully first as a couple and then as divorced individuals. I am eternally grateful to my friends for helping me create this new celebration, one that reminds me of the good things that came from and continue to come from my partnership with my ex-husband.
Happy Co-Parenting Day!
© 2015 Elizabeth Galen, Ph.D., Green Heart Guidance, LLC
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