Just me and the dog, once again. Well, this kind of thing is going to happen now that her mom left. One of the reasons I hated the thought of D all my life. The not being there for my D's when they need me or just to be there is something I will have to get used to.
Can I just say that part of what I read there was that YOU don't want to be alone? There's more to this statement (I'm reading) than that you aren't there for your daughter.
Truth is, your daughter wants to know you are there and still try to have her own life. You are doing that, but it seems that the normal part of weaning the parent away is somehow distorted in all of this. i.e. when you were hurt earlier, you reacted by protecting your daughter (good choice). It's harder to back away from that when still being assailed. But your daughter deserves to have her dad "be there" for her. Even if not in close proximity.
Seems one of your fears is being brought up. The fear of divorce and how that would impact you and your family. Now that you've named it, it's all about how you deal with it.
Take your W out of the equation. Step back and see your role as a father. How do you need to support her. What's her thoughts on that? What's her impression of how you are doing that? She may see what you're doing very differently than you do (I hope so; what kind of teen daughter wouldn't?)
You're processing this very well, Matt. You've had a lot of years to practice I suspect. Don't lose perspective though, you know?
I'm sure whatever you decide will work out perfectly in the long run.
AJ
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter" MLK Put the glass down... "Yesterday I was clever so I wanted to change the world Today I am wise, so I am changing myself."
