Although love slipped away and dissolved, my ex-husband was and is admirable in many ways. He had and has great qualities I’m thankful he shared with me. Now, after a year and a half, I can see more clearly, on looking back at “us,” at “him,” and give him credit.

Things fall apart, and as the saying goes, it takes two to tango. It’s good to look back and see the good that was. A chapter that will forever be part of our stories. Reconciling with them helps us move forward and feel proud of yet another experience.

The time we shared had its ups and downs but we never quarreled. Neither of us liked confrontations, and we also shared a love for peace and quiet and alone time. He had many qualities I admire:

• He was extremely loyal to me.
• He never picked fights.
• He was hardworking.
• He expressed his care by doing and giving.
• He treated my nieces like his own.
• For years he picked me up daily from work after his long ass days at work when he could have gone home early.
• He was tidy.
• He always called me to say he was on his way home.
• He never made me feel guilty for going away to Spain for months while he stayed on his own, even on holidays.
• He was funny.
• He was extremely gifted and talented. He had a great sense of style, very artistic and a great eye for decor.
• He was also an extremely patient man.

I wish him well and hope he finds someone who can see all those great qualities and more. I’m at peace with him, my past, and the future that has yet to unfold. Each on our own roads to, hopefully, relative happiness.