I have received a letter from my daughter! The first communication since a text message two years ago!!

It’s a respectful and thougthul letter that will take some time and effort to respond to. It says ‘You are wiped out of my life. I don’t need you.’ But it IS a letter and she has her new mobile number of the letter (though I won’t use it at this stage).

Hey Ian,

That’s positive news mate! Even though she says you are “wiped” (whatever that means!) it’s only for a season or time.

I’m sure your response will be caring, compassionate and thoughtful.

They say blood is thicker than water 🙂

Thanks AnnMarie and Pierre,

I do want to show her that she is heard and deeply loved. She is 18.

I know I need to apologise- but I do also want to say “and I was lying to myself all those years” – not that it’s all about me.

she didn’t say “wiped” – she said “even though yhou talk about things in the past when we may have spent time togehter you have to appreciate that from my point of view those times mean nothing because you were not the person you made yourself out to be’

ON a happier note, I came out to my boss yesterday! I hadn’t even told her that I was separated or divorced. (I didn’t think it was something that she needed to know). We were having a discussion about future career development, and we discussed why I hadn’t done certain training in the past. and it made sense to tell her. She said that she thought I had been happier and more confident over recent months. So that was a positive assessment of where my life is going. And so then I took a deep breath and told her why I was happier.

i

Dear Ian,

I am very happy for you. The fact that your children have responded (even if it isn’t exactly the “Pepys Correspondences” in length) is in and of itself a very good sign.

My only suggestion to you is to take it slowly. Your children are still trying to wrap their heads around how their conception of you has changed (a process that can take quite a bit of time). They want healing, they want to have a relationship with you, they obviously are reaching out for daddy. But it may take them some time.

As a father, you no doubt understand the value of patience.

Take it easy and take your time. Alright?

Yours,

Raul.

JayD,

‘Semi-Atheist’? You mean you dened the existence of Tractor-Trailers? :bigsmile:

…I’m sorry, that was a really lame joke. I couldn’t help it!

But out of curiosity, what do you identify as now?

Dear Pierre,

Well, actually it’s funny that you ask!

The phrase as we see it today first appear in an English newspaper in1898:

“It is said that once ‘curiosity killed a Thomas cat.’ ”

This is a modified form of a phrase which is said to originated from the 1598 play “Every Man in His Humour” by Ben Jonson which goes thus:

“Helter skelter, hang sorrow, care’ll kill a Cat, up-tails all, and a Louse for the Hangman.”

The word ‘care’ in this context is more akin to ‘needless worry and prodding’. Hence why it eventually mutated to “Curiosity Killed The Cat”.

Hope that helps!

Yours in Christ,

Raul