As someone whose 6 year relationship was ended via an e-mail, I found this essay spot on. Thanks for writing it.

Unless there was abuse or the threat of future harm, I will never understand the no contact forever goodbye. The e-mail that says leave me alone, I don’t care if you live or die, have a nice life.

Even apologies are never acknowledged. Boundaries have been drawn and most be defended at whatever cost.

My ex’s mother believed that relationships are like crystal wine glasses. Once they fall to the ground and shatter, they cannot be put back together again. They must simply be swept up and thrown away, of no further use.

It hurts being discarded like a piece of garbage. People are not like glassware. Glass can be recycled. It is no longer just the sand from which it was made.

To me, a relationship is more like a jigsaw puzzle that is never fully solved. You liked the picture enough to buy the puzzle in the first place.

When it falls to the floor, it breaks apart into its individual pieces. There may now be some missing or lost pieces. But with time and effort, what’s left of it can be put back together.