Author’s Note

 

Do you remember your first gym class? Do you remember how weird it felt to be standing there in your shorts and t-shirt, in an awkward, pre-pubescent state of embarrassment? Dozens of eyes seemed to be staring and evaluating you down to the pores in your skin. Ok, maybe not everyone felt that way, but I did. Putting this story forward, this story of one of the most painful but healing journeys of my life, feels a lot the same.

 

So why am I doing it? Why am I offering myself up as a sacrificial lamb? I know I face criticism, possibly hatred and reprisal, or even a total loss of credibility with my family, peers, and associates.

 

Why? I want to help those who have been in, are in, or are considering entering into an affair with a married person. If you are any of these souls, you are not alone. Yet a tortuous silence tends to keep us from helping each other. I’m here to share the joy, the shame, the love, the pain, and the real story of where it goes. I’m here to help you avoid the inevitable crash. If possible, I’d like to help you steer clear, but having crashed myself, there is no moral tower from which I look down. I’ve learned that everyone is fallible.

 

This particular work is from a woman’s point of view, but I have no doubt that there are men out there who have the same issues. No matter how we dress it up or tear it down, a relationship based on betrayal causes pain. Whether the betrayal is of the self or of another is of no matter. Sooner or later there is pain. Yet incredible passion, true love, and grand adventures are ingredients in the soup too. Is it worth it? How do you know? The answer is you don’t know. In the moments of joy and passion, you are dancing. In the moments of pain, you are tangled in the truth. You are dancing between lies.

 

. . . Step into my soul… I invite you…