Seeing how far we've come since the ugliness and uncertainty is so big. Honestly, H openly praising me for working really hard for myself and our future is something that would've been rare in MR 1.0. That H showered me with love and affection but rarely if ever praised my work ethic, ambition and drive. That H often felt insecure about those aspects of who I am. That H often saw my ambition as a threat to his masculinity not necessarily in the traditional sense, but as a provider. H's job provided us to live in relative comfort with or without my income, but his job is manual and the one he took as job during his "gap" year, which ended up not being a gap. H tries to behave as if the money is more important than fulfillment, but I know it's not. Just his ability to move past all that stuff and prioritize my feelings over something like this is really a big leap into MR 2.0.
Wow, after reading your entire sitch and now seeing this...I'm so happy for you! And, I admire you so much! I relate so much to your sitch (and aspects of your personality), and I know what it feels like to feel some of what you describe above. The fact that you are seen and not have to guess if he is seeing you, but know he is really seeing you for you, is sooo good! And being appreciated for who you ARE is gold.
Me 52, H 56 T10 M7, 2nd MR for both 2 Step Sons (19 and 21) BD: Fall 2020 D finalized: July 2022 XH Married AP soon after D day.
