13 Comments
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Peter Wills's avatar

This is such a good read Cyndi. Heart wrenching but so good. Having watched The War Of Roses I get the burning of his clothes. Much love and respect for writing this.

Cyndi Stuart's avatar

Thank you so much. That means more than you know. And yes… The War of the Roses definitely made me feel a little less crazy about the bonfire. 😂 Sometimes burning the clothes isn’t about revenge—it’s about finally letting go. I really appreciate you reading and taking the time to tell me.

Peter Wills's avatar

It really is cathartic letting go isn’t it Cyndi. I gotta say when I saw, The War Of The Roses reference I thought whew 😅 at least it didn’t get has far as that crazy ending hanging off the chandelier 😂!

Lisa Del Toro's avatar

Wow. I really relate to this. My husband blew up our lives two years ago when he had an affair with an 18 year old intern at the law firm where he was partner. Women I used to be friends with wanted nothing to do with me. It was truly unbelievable. What I've learned is that God, or the universe, whichever you believe in, are truly more creative than we are as writers when it comes to Karma. I can imagine the pain, fear, and loneliness you went through during that time. Betrayal trauma is incredibly difficult to navigate, writing was one of the only things that helped me. I'm so glad I got to read this. Thanks so much for sharing this story:)

Cyndi Stuart's avatar

Thank you so much for sharing this with me. I’m so sorry you had to walk through that kind of betrayal. It’s heartbreaking how often the affair isn’t the only loss—we end up grieving friendships we never imagined we’d lose too. That part caught me completely off guard.

I smiled when I read what you said about karma. Life has a way of writing endings far more creatively than we ever could.

Writing became my lifeline too. It gave me somewhere to put the pain until I was strong enough to carry it. I’m so grateful my story found you, and even more grateful you took the time to share yours with me. I have a feeling you’re going to love Book 2. ❤️

Joanna Huang's avatar

What a read. And what resilience. It’s the kind of resilience that I try to teach children early so they can deal with whatever crazy things life might through at them.

Subscribed to you, hope we can support each other’s work! joannasarc.substack.com

Cyndi Stuart's avatar

I subscribed to you as well. I’m looking forward to reading and supporting your work.

Cyndi Stuart's avatar

Resilience is probably one of my greatest assets, but it certainly wasn’t born from an easy life. It was built through heartache, disappointment, and learning how to begin again. The subject fascinates me.

C. Lamas | The Next Chapter's avatar

Real life really does not disappoint. Does it?

Cyndi Stuart's avatar

Not for a second. The plot twists are unbelievable, the characters are complicated, and somehow the stories are always stranger than fiction. That’s probably why I write about real life. ❤️

C. Lamas | The Next Chapter's avatar

I do too! I don’t know (yet) how to write about anything else.

Jess's avatar

Wow, this was a beautiful and heart wrenching read. I believe reinvention is a natural default of surrendering to the human existence over & over again. To do what we need to do & become what/who we need to become to take our power back any time it waivers. Seems you’re doing that brilliantly!

Cyndi Stuart's avatar

Thank you so much. I think you’ve captured something I’ve been trying to understand myself. Reinvention isn’t always a choice we make because we’re fearless. Sometimes it’s what happens after life strips away the version of ourselves we thought would last forever. We surrender, we rebuild, and somewhere along the way we discover we’re stronger than we ever imagined. Thank you for reading and for seeing that in my story. 🤍