What I Thought Was Love
Other women will probably only meet the charming, guitar-playing, life-of-the-party version. They won’t get the version I lived with behind closed doors. That’s not my burden anymore. I know the secret. I know the pattern. And I am no longer available for it. We are old now, where she will never get to the extent of knowing him behind closed doors. I was only someone he could manipulate, and now he has no one else to do that to.
Dear Person I Never Truly Knew
Because of keeping my mouth shut about what happened behind closed doors…
Because of how I was (and still am) called cruel names and told how stupid I am…
Because you stole my journals and tried to find something inside them to hurt me with… I stayed small so you could feel big.
But those days are over.
I Did It Twice
For decades, I was told I was “too emotional,” “too sensitive,” “too dramatic,” “too much.” For decades, I believed I needed someone else to speak for me…. But when the moment came – when I had to choose between shrinking back into the woman he trained me to be or stepping forward as the woman I was becoming – I chose myself.
Boomers vs Millennials
I made a choice for my well-being, just like she did. We both walked away. And maybe that’s the saddest part—not that one of us left, but that staying became impossible for both of us.
If you’re a Boomer parent navigating estrangement—whether you were left or you chose to step back—you’re not alone. It’s okay to protect your peace. It’s okay to love someone from a distance when being close hurts too much. And it’s okay to not have the answers. Most of us don’t.
The First Morning Without the Weight: My Valentine to Myself
And this morning, I woke up happy. Happy with a tiny dog on my chest, looking up at me with sleepy eyes before choosing to trust me enough to drift back to sleep. I am mourning the woman I used to be, the one who accepted the crumbs for all those years. But I am wildly, desperately in love with who I am today. The woman who is finally the priority.
Cheaters of All Kinds Part I
They are masters at hiding secrets behind charm, hiding betrayal behind generosity, hiding rot behind warmth, all with a smile. Until that one day. Not when they confess—they never confess. Not when guilt finally catches up—it never does. But when the evidence stacks too high, when the story stops adding up, when someone finally connects the dots they worked so hard to keep scattered. They are caught. Not because they slipped. Not because they admitted anything. But because even the best webs have weak threads…
Cheaters of All Kinds Part 2
Why We Keep Falling For Them
Be honest with yourself. If a kind, stable, slightly boring person walked up to you at a party, would you notice them? Or would your eyes be glued to the loud, beautiful, magnetic one across the room? We are drawn to these people because they are exciting. They make us feel like we won a prize. But here’s the truth they don’t want you to know.
The patterns don’t lie, trust them
Behind closed doors, the playful charm he showed the world was replaced by verbal cruelty. He frequently addressed me with demeaning titles such as “Complete Zero,” “Fcking Idiot,” and “Fcking Moron,” often mocking my intelligence. This behavior continued until the end of our relationship; one of his final messages to me was the derogatory remark, “What the f*ck… you act like you just got off the boat from China.”
The Thousand Small Cuts
Trying to be partners with someone who still operates from a place of secrecy and blame is like trying to build a house on quicksand. My peaceful intention was sincere, but it was no match for his unchanged character.
The Lim Twins Legacy: My Journey with Donna
A story of two halves: For decades, The Lim Twins have been an influential force in fitness, media, and photography. Discover how Donna and her sister built their legacy on an unbreakable bond and a shared mission to inspire.