Pain in Finding Happiness: The Facade of Happiness

Franks emotional absence meant that Christy had to live life as a single parent even though she was married. She was almost always unable to drive due to her health issues and had to rely on friends and family to run her errands or take her places. The situation left Christy having to explain to everyone who cared about her why it was that her husband wasn't doing these things. The one thing Christy had to hold on to was the facade of a happy marriage and even that was falling apart around her.

Everyone could see the pain and loneliness in Christy's eyes and very few still believed she was happy. Even the children began to notice that something was different about Mommy. They couldn't understand what was going on, why "Daddy" wouldn't go to their school functions, or why Mommy was always crying. They only wanted to live inside the family portrait where everyone smiled.

Christy wanted nothing more than to have her children be secure in life; security was the one thing that she had failed to ever offer them. The kids loved Frank, despite his lack of parenting skills he was the closest thing to a Daddy they had ever known. They were learning family values from a man who had none and it saddened Christy to know that she was allowing them to think this was acceptable.

Christy was unable to find the answers she so desperately needed, she had no idea what to do. She often wondered why she had allowed Frank to come back home in the first place and if she would ever gain the strength to make him leave again. It was obvious at this point that he didn't want to, or couldn't, be the change he wanted to see in the world so Christy knew that she had to.

Christy had to stop waiting for Frank to change, stop waiting for the world to change and just make the changes she could within herself. What that meant was that she had given up hope and was simply biding her time. It was also the start of a more troublesome home life because she would no longer keep her mouth shut when she was being wronged. Past experience told her that she had to speak up; she had to stand solid for the sake of her children and stop allowing the things she didn't like.

She still tried to keep her pain to herself, tried to maintain for the sake of her boys but she couldn't do it alone. Christy began asking her closest friends for advice, letting them into her life a little at a time. She knew that no one could make life changing decisions for her but still wished that someone would just tell her what to do. The only thing that Christy was sure of was that she and the kids would be better off without Frank. She knew exactly where she wanted to be in life but Christy found out that knowing where you need to be is so much easier than getting there!

If you are just joining us in this mini series please go back and read Christy's saga from the beginning.
PART ONE: OVERCOMING FEARS

PART TWO: THE SAGA CONTINUES

PART 3: HIS NAME WAS FRANK

PART 4: BLINDED BY LOVE, BONDED THROUGH FEAR

PART 5: CHRISTY'S LEGACY

PART 6: BROKEN PROMISES