I've really enjoyed this discussion. I've never posted before--merely a lurker in the darkness--but I can identify with what you write. I think that bitterness is natural: I think that pessimism is natural. Just as the love and hope and passion--and passionate opinions--of all the posters who've replied to you are natural. It's all human, and it's all right and just and good. Your post doesn't discourage me, even though I'm new here and looking for inspiration. Part of me will always be a realist. I think that bringing up children without help keeps me real. I, also, am a little doubtful of MLC as a specific psychological state. The damage done by an affair, by a spouse obsessed with another, ranting, inventing a tale of an endlessly wretched marriage, and neglecting his/her children, is simply incalculable. My heart is always with those who put their children first. We all have different ways of protecting our children. You have done it your way, and my blessings go out to you.
