Adrift on the ocean

On our recent cruise I spent a lot of time with my sister. My sister who has now been divorced for about six months.

Some of you may remember that she divorced her husband because he was such a wonderful man and he deserved a woman that would treat him the way a wife should treat a husband. Realizing that she never would, my sister divorced him. Despite the fact he was willing to stay and work it out.

During the days we spent together she, more than once, assured me that she was the happiest she had ever been in her life. She loved her job, her children and her new found freedom. This was what she was saying anyway.

It's pretty obvious to me that she is lost and just drifting in the wind like a boat in the ocean with no oars, no direction, no plan. As most people know, the more information you are given the better chance you have of putting together a clearer picture of a situation. Lets just say by the end of the cruise the picture was crystal clear.

My sister is a very strong willed, private person. She does not give personal information out freely. You have to listen and catch the little pieces. Three days was enough for me to know I wasn't buying what she was selling.

The evidence:

• She was reading not one but three self help books. Now there is nothing wrong with that but they were all books about finding direction in life. Not exactly a topic you would think someone, who just got everything she ever wanted, would be reading.
  

• She casually mentioned, out of the blue, that she found it odd after ten years of marriage her ex husband was willing to change his behavior that was causing the marriage to end. He begged but she told him it was too late. WTF? I thought to myself when I heard this. I thought he was suppose to be this great guy and she was the problem? Seems we are starting to revise that part of history now.
  

• Still being a friend of her ex husband, the father of my nieces, I asked if he had started dating anyone? She snapped back "don't know, don't care, not my problem." Sheesh, if she doesn't care why is she getting so damn mad about it. That was the first time in three days I had even mentioned him.
  

So at the end of the cruise, after we passed through customs and were ready to go our separate ways home, I hugged her and told her if she needed anything to give me a call. She won't of course because in her mind that would be admitting weakness. I was happy with the time we got to spend together. The bond we share as brother and sister was a little stronger than it was before. As she walked away, carrying her heavy baggage, I noticed a lack of stability in her step. I wanted to run over and take some of the baggage in my hand to ease her burden but I knew she wouldn't let me.

Hopefully, one day soon, she'll put some of that baggage down and be able to take hold of her oars again.