Divorce

 

Divorce

 BY Mahantha Gamage Maheshika Hasanthimala Dinushani

It happened on the last Sunday, when I was traveling from Colombo to Galle by the train. I had a window seat. Next to me, a man of middle thirties sat and both of us had a nice discussion on our way. After sometime he shared me with his life story which truly made a remarkable incident in his life. He started to narrate his story which I have brought to you in his same view with his own perception without any alterations. The man raised his voice and started to narrate his story in this way.

“It was a day in the last December as far as I can hark back to and arrived at home very late in the night. At that juncture, my wife Anne she had prepared the dinner a delicious meal and she served me the dinner. That night I did not have any appetite to eat anything as I was writhed from lot of complications which swirled around my head. She sat on my left side and started to eat very unobtrusively. I found that her face was so dully and it evoked her despondency that she had entombed in her heart. I found that how can I say this to her. I got stuck for the moment and couldn’t open my mouth. I was really flabbergasted at the moment. But anyhow I had to convey her, what I was thinking, my sole ides to her, that I cannot live with her anymore.

Simply that I want a divorce from her. I started to raise my voice and came into the topic very deliberately. But still she didn’t say a single word. I was narrating the story for the next few minutes as well and precipitously I saw her hurt and melancholy imprisoned in her heart through her grey face. At once she asked why you want a divorce from me. She started to raise her questions softly.

Those words made me really speechless. I found that she wanted to know what had happened to our marriage life. But how can I answer for those questions? How can I convey that I love someone else in my office and I don’t love you anymore? I just wanted to give up her and I scrupulously wanted have a life with Meleesa , a nice good looking lady who works in my workplace.

I elucidated to her that I can afford her with maintenance facilities so that she can live without any problem at all. Suddenly she stared at me and I found that her face was full of lot of resentment .She had spent nearly eight years of her life with me but at the moment I did not want her anymore. Because Meleesa had entered my life and I felt that both our thoughts were really matching. I really felt sorry for her wasting her time with me, her anticipations. I did not want Anne to be in my life any longer. Because my heart always said that, Meleesa will love me more than how Anne loved me. I can remember how Anne wept in front of me with her eyes full of tears. That night was full of sense of guilt and stopped taking with each other.

The next day as usual, I went to my office. That night also I came back home very late in the night. The same routine happened for few days. An incident that occurred on a late night made me really wretched. That was mainly because of my little son, Jeffry, the first son of mine and Anne. He came into me and asked me to carry into his bedroom and to make him sleep. I did so. But my son asked few questions from me which made me a turning point in my life finally. He asked from me “why dada why don’t you love my momma? Why don’t you impress her as you did previously? During the last few years both you and my momma were really exultant. We had nice picnics, we had nice merriments. Why this kind of a dark era has come into our lives. Why what has happened to both of you? I just want both of you to be with me forever. I cannot imagine a world without you and my momma. So please dada please stay with us without making us deserted.”  I found that my son was screaming and weeping, his eyes said me lot more things about the life.

I was really sad and got disappointed. How can I make my youngster sad, still so young and small? What will happen to my son, the most prestigious gift I ever received from the god after the separation from Anne? These problems started to make a storm in my head. I couldn’t even imagine a world without my son, Jeffry. Without speaking a single word, I just came into my room and started to think about my life. I started to think how this kind of a divorce will affect my child who is still nine years old. How can he tolerate all these things? I started crying.

The next day as usual I went to my office work. As usual Meleesa came into my cabin and in full swing to talk about our marriage. I said “sorry Meleesa, I think that I don’t want any new marriage now and as well, I don’t want any divorce. I got attracted to you because I felt that you will love me more than how Anne loved me. But I have found that you love me only because of my affluence, the possessions I have. My marriage life was dreary probably because both I and Anne have not identified the real connotation of marriage life but not because we did not love each other. My little son made me to think lot more about life. Now I have become conscious that I am the one who is supposed to take care of her, and only our death can make us apart. I have found the real essence of a marriage life”. Meleesa got annoyed and she did not want to hear anything and quickly vanished from my cabin.

That day I finished my office work hastily and thought to vigor home little earlier. I thought of buying some gifts for my little son and Anne. I ran to my wife and took her into my hands and said that “My love is only for you, only death can make us apart” and I carried her around our orchard and I saw how my little son was relishing with us. From that day onwards I found how, marriage life so such an important thing and unless we identify the real significance of life we won’t be able to live as good luck would have it.” That man of middle thirties continued his story in that way.

Finally the train arrived to the destination and both of us got aboard and said good bye to each other , a nice person whom shared a nice life story and gave me more perception to think more about the theme relevant to marriage and divorce which truly a concept that should be given with utmost importance.