All Comments on 'An Epiphany'

Good short story, nice change in the way the husband handles the divorce. 4*

While there is realism here,where the husband realizes why bother to try and save his marriage, that even if she wasn't cheating ( she was), she wasn't a loving spouse, it is a flat procedural.

Yes, he became indifferent, and left, which might be realistic. But that also leaves the reader with nothing, this is like a police blotter. The author raises our interest then totally ignores us.

It isn't that we want a reconciliation, we just want a story. Was she really scared about having kids, and tried to drive him away? If she found some better guys, why didn't she just drop her husband, it isn't like they had kids or anything really tied in. If she was doing what she did to get ahead, why did she treat him like shit?

He at least would have checked out what she said ( so we could see it , too). The other thing is I don't think anyone who has been emotionally abused would want to leave it to let her tell the story. He would tell friends what happened and why, no on wants to be seen as the bad guy by everyone. Sorry but that is the reality.

I give it credit for not being btb, or violence, or all that kind of thing, but even if I decided a spouse wasn't worth saving I still would want to know why, that is human nature.

Some ppl have commented he didn't need to know , that she was a bitch and that is that. When you have loved someone and this happens you want to know so it doesn't happen again. Maybe there were clues all along with her he missed but in light of context he sees it& knows what to avoid. If it was the job and a scummy boss banging her, he will know why, and will realize he made the right decision & also will see the signs earlier if it happens again. Especially given are treated him like shit, he tried ,she rebuffed his efforts, again why didn't she just dump him? And then why did she bother to try and make it work? After all she doesn't lose anything by divorcing him, no big financial loss, no social cost, no worries with kids. A normal person would want to know to reconcile what happened.

Thank you. 5 stars. Could feel the emotion, even without dialogue.

Good story!

5

*****Been there done that, and never looked back!!! Good read. Thanks for sharing.

Good read! 5*

Hmmm . . . some Anony was offended by my pointing certain things out. We don't know for sure she was cheating, neither did the MC, he just THOUGHT she probably was.

Now IF she wasn't cheating, she still, in his opinion, was treating him like shit . . . but we (and he) don't know her side for sure. IF her actions were due to some psychological or medical impairment AND she hadn't physically cheated (just been a bitch), the HE is the one breaking his vows. We may never know (and he'll never know) because he ran away without hearing her side. (His widdo feewings got hurt, so he ran away wallowing in a pool of self-righteousness that may or may not have been justified.) Well, in my opinion, he was PROBABLY right about her, but he'll never know for sure, because he tucked tail and ran. It's hard to support someone whose unwilling to stand up and face their supposed tormentor. Now, even if she was a total bitch, he's just as pathetic (if not worse) than her.

Another story that sucks because the little boy couldn’t handle talking to his wife. He finally got her attention and just blocked it all and deleted voice mails. That is just immature and weak. She was better off without him.

Look, I liked it and I think it's a complete story for the narrator.

But as a reader I want the other half of the story. What's going on with her?

While not bad, the story was kind of boring. No information on why the wife changed, who or why she cheated with, just nothing. Hell, maybe she was suffering from some sort of mental breakdown/disease. I guess we'll never know!

Like many readers here, I turn first to the fantasy revenge stories with their regretful confessions of why the cheater cheated coupled with their total destruction, but this rational, well-written, believable story is a perfect palate cleanser before returning to my guilty pleasures. Thanks for sharing!

OMG, NO DRAMA, where's the story in that? But if me, I too would just want to walk away.

A really good story and one that had a lot of realism.

My only question is why. Why, if she was intent on destroying her marriage, was she then intent on salvaging it after being served divorce papers. Afterall, if she was intelligent, she would have seen the end coming. He stopped trying, he stopped caring, he even said it was the end of their marriage and still she ignored him.

So why did she want to salvage what she she completely demolished.

That was a good short story. He did what most of us here would do to try and save the marriage, but it takes two to tango as they say, and she wasn't interested until she was served. Then she put on an act where she wanted him back. Fail. He even tried to explain it to her father who started to get miffed at him. Once the divorce was finalized he never heard a word from her.

Awful little story, about a man who divorces his wife with absolutely no proof of anything other than that she ignored him for awhile. Then in what is such a classic LW trope and cliche, he won’t communicate with her about anything and closes down most avenues of communication. All those married years and this jackass won’t talk with her. Poor baby, cue the sad violins, “I tried to get her to talk with me but she wouldn’t” - oh, boo hoo. Grow a pair and talk with her. Maybe she was acting that way because you’re a rigid, demanding dick - but, who knows? Surely not you, because after you got her attention you wouldn’t listen to her. Boring, badly clicheed story. 1*

This was only half a story. He just cut and ran. It never got the closure it needed.,He might say he moved on, but he will spend the rest of his life wondering...

A very long narration with zero emotive appeal. What if he thought they were on the same page and about to try for a child or if she told him she was pregnant or if he discovered she had gone for an abortion. What if there was some dialogue... What if Wavedave kept his low IQ ramblings to himself... So many missteps

It might be somewhat realistic -- it probably isn't -- but as stories go, it's pretty shitty. There's nothing here for a reader.

Why bother writing and publishing this? There's no story here.

An essay on how to remain sane when one's partner loses the plot.

My son was just robbed of all he owned and of course the insurance company had a dozen excuses why they would never pay. Sometimes it is best just to write off a loss and make a new fresh start.

The author makes that point well. To me the excellent life lesson deserves a 5.

Good story would like to see the other side as in Linda and her game play and how she felt afterwards.

Brilliant. Do what you can, but if you make no headway then just walk away.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

This reads like an extended recipe. There is no enjoyment in your writing as it is overly dry. Have fun with your writing and let your enthusiasm out instead of something so dry that you need to drink a glass of water while reading it.

No tension, no interaction between characters... This was an essay, not a story.

Been there done that. He did the right thing. It is hard when only one person is trying in a marriage. She stonewalled him any time he wanted to talk about the problem. Living with a person who disrespects you is very stressful. If he stayed things would have gotten worse. I've read some of the comments and wondered if some people actually read the story. Some said he didn't do enough. That is bull. I have been in that situation and believe me it's awful.

I don't understand how someone can be married for a few years and be totally satisfied with not knowing why his marriage disintegrated. He puts up a strong indifferent attitude but it will come back to haunt him eventually. Unless, of course, he's as pathological as she is.

c24j is spot on.

So, when the husband decides to "pull the plug" on the marriage, the husband is always belittled for not doing MORE to save a bad marriage but when the wife decides to "pull the plug" on a marriage you never see the woman criticized for not doing more to save a bad marriage. What's good for the goose is good for the gander

I see this as a good story but definitely one side of the whole story. To make it great we now need a part two from her point of view so that we can " now know the rest of the story..." that would put both chapters over the top.

Forget the cheating (or not) aspect. If you can't talk to a person, how can communication take place. The wife would not talk about their problems or go to counseling. She wanted to live her life and not be held accountable for her contept and disrespect. He was just a meal ticket to her. Dump the bitch. Good riddance.

For what was included, I thought it was well written, but this feels like an incomplete story to me. I am not one of those FTDS people, that need to know every last little detail and have every little thing resolved. However, I also am not a fan of true mystery stories. I am talking about the type of story (or movie) that ends purposefully not answering major question(s) in the story, and instead leaves the ending as a "mystery". I hate that. The major conflict in this story is the relationship between the man and wife. The conflict is resolved in that the husband moves on, but no explanation is offered (purposefully) for why anything happened. So, my distaste (3 stars for good writing, grammar, characterization, etc) for this style of story is reflected in my rating as an okay story.

More true to life , who cares if she’s fucking the local guard , just go

This is incomplete without Linda's half of the story. There was no conflict or resolution. A guy leaves his cheating wife and refuses to engage in dialog, then what's the point of the story? Your nameless MC might not want any details or closure, but you posted a story for an audience. They are probably going to want a satisfactory ending, not just "whelp I don't know why it happened and I don't want to."

This story was a decent change of pace. No lengthy arguments or crying about the failed marriage. It’s simple, the wife treated the husband like shit, he tried to talk to her multiple times but she stonewalled him. The husband finally has enough and goes for divorce and moves on with his life.

Funny how some people are ragging on the husband for walking away from a toxic marriage and not doing ‘enough’. They would also complain had the story went the usual BTB route.

Took a whole lot longer to move on then it should. To all the people that feel the need to here her side of it, get over it. He tried until it was obvious she was single by choice. She became irrelevant to his life and he moved on. She should be happy, she got what she earned. If she feels devastated by being dumped and ignored then tough shit. Get over yourself....or don't you no longer matter at all to him. If your not happy with the outcome go cry a river no one fucking cares bitch.

Many readers contend that the story is incomplete and/or they need to read Linda's perspective. I totally disagree. The husband married a woman, who disguised her narcissism until after their wedding. Once their marriage gained some stability, her husband offered no further excitement, and she decided to transition to a new source of gratification. Meanwhile the husband innocently followed her progress, watching their love, trust, or respect diminish. Instead of erupting from emotions, he pursued a rational, quiet resolution to his relationship. As a consequence, Linda gained her friends' attention and sympathy, to satisfy her narcissistic needs, and her husband found happiness. IMO, this is THE optimal outcome for dealing with a narcissist. Deny them the attention that they crave and focus on one's own happiness. As far as the writing, there was a lot of telling and little showing, not a strong point. I think it's forgivable because it offered the narrative of someone dealing with a narcissist. The protagonist calmly explained his process and drove the narrative to its conclusion. Increasing the emotional energy would conflict with his calm demeanour and disrupt the narrative. The story certainly didn't fit the mold for the typical LW story and it failed many reader's expectations. But when dealing with a narcissist the best way of managing oneself is by breaking expectations. It fits the theme.

The MC's attitude certainly avoids all the drama in the split. Unfortunately, it also takes the drama out of the story.

I have to echo what the others say. There's nothing here. Sorry.

Liked it but wanted more of her strangely..

Very average, didn't ring true in any way.

Nicely done.

I see no reason to know

why some people are or get evil.

Just kick them out of your life and forget them.

That should be the rule.

Revenge can be needed in extreme cases.

And drama, that's for drama queens.

Nice story but it was short.

It gets 4 out of 5 from me.

Meh. Too narrative driven, do you know about dialogue? Also, the cliche ending. You should work on your writing craft, and practice using dialogue. You are telling, when you should show. It's a basic rule of fiction writing. The best way to show is via dialogue..

This is a mercy three stars story.

JPB NOT BOB

Better late than never,can't understand what took him so long to pull the trigger.

Escaping the narcissist is always worth it. Something made her believe him to be useless and treat him like a slave.