A job can offer a lot of meaning and purpose to the life of someone in MLC, which is exactly what they are searching for. It's very important that we support them, but let them do it on their own. My wife has always worked out of the home, (no kids) but recently told me that her job is one of the only things keeping her going. And hers is a stressful job that prior to BD, she often thought of quitting! We could get by on my salary alone, but there is no way she would quit now.
The rings:
It means a lot. Especially since she hasn't worn them in 3 years. She is sending a signal to the world... and to you. It is a positive.
My W continued to wear her rings to work, because if she didn't, "coworkers would know something was up", and she couldn't have that. But she seemed to go out of her way to NOT wear them while with me...Until recently. Now she sometimes wears them even when we are together. It definitely is a sign of her softening up to me, I think.
I take it as a positive sign for hope of R, and you should too. Sometimes we need this kind of hope just to carry on. I know I do.
M: A really long time. Crisis: 5 years. She's still worth it.
Life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose. -Viktor Frankl
