What You Can Learn About Florida Divorce From the Coronavirus Pandemic

           For those who can’t wait to express their indignance after reading the title of this post, relax. The most crucial reflections are made at the time an event occurs. The longer you wait, i.e. the longer you ignore the wisdom of a moment due to feelings of discomfort, the harder it is to digest the value of the lesson. That said, now is the time to mine the depths of this struggle to find value in the intersection of Florida Divorce and COVID-19.

Lesson One: You Are Stronger Than You Think

The first benefit to early reflection is that you’re able to accurately assess what you were feeling at the time of the struggle. It’s easy to forget, or mischaracterize, an experience with the benefit or detriment of time. There’s no reason to beat yourself up over this, it’s human nature. We all want to put things in a tidy package, it’s what helps us get through the day. The problem with that is, by doing this, it makes it easy to discount our strength and resilience for getting through ‘the thing’. Take a moment to evaluate your mindset a few weeks into this pandemic. The novelty of staying home and the relief of stepping back from the rat race for a time has faded. Your normally relaxed demeanor is long gone. While you normally were able to take things in stride, the fact that no one took the time to wash their damn dishes after dinner resulted in a complete breakdown. A shrieking, slamming the bathroom door, crying jag kind of breakdown. ‘This is too hard’, you told yourself. ‘I’ll never get through this’, you said. And yet…       

      And yet, here you are. Sure, you may be carrying a bit of guilt about the way you acted. The petulance you showed may cause you to shiver a bit. But, at the end of the day, you handled it. You survived. And you not only survived, but you did so with newfound insight. Maybe the rage you felt came from the years of not standing up for yourself. From the years you spent quieting your voice ‘for the greater good’. You have learned that you can only discover that you’re fireproof by walking through the fire.

Lesson Two: Life Is Short and

You Deserve to Be Happy

      Deciding to file for a Florida divorce is the last step in an extremely complex battle. This battle, unlike many others, is usually one fought with yourself. It doesn’t matter whether you’re the one who actually pulled the trigger, rarely is one party taken completely by surprise. If you’re honest with yourself, the red flags have been there for quite some time. Whether you chose to ignore them or accepted them doesn’t matter. The root of both is the same. Fear of the unknown. When you turn down the volume on the voice inside of you, it always comes down to a feeling of unworthiness. This is what you signed up for. If your spouse is treating you this way, you must have done something to deserve it. After all, you’re not perfect. And what about the kids? Surely exposing the kids to Florida divorce will do more harm than good.

    The problem with this self-talk is that it is just an excuse to keep you from your truth. We hold ourselves back simply because we are afraid of what lies on the other side of fear. But if you think about it, if you really think about it, you know that staying small is just arguing with reality. You can do the thing that seems impossible. If this pandemic has taught us all one thing it’s that life is fragile and finite. The question now becomes, how much more of yours are you willing to waste?

Lesson Three: Florida Divorce May Not Be a Walk

in the Park but True Growth Rarely Is

As Denis Waitley once said, “There are two primary choices in life: to accept conditions as they exist or accept the responsibility for changing them.” COVID-19 has taught us all an important lesson. It has broadened our horizons and taught us the importance of taking action. What legacy do you want to leave? What lesson do you want to teach your children? That you accept less to keep the peace? Or that you are strong, and you stand up for what you know you deserve? That you know your worth and are willing to do whatever it takes to ensure you get the most of this one wild and precious life you have been gifted? But you already know the answer to that. The only thing you need is the courage to make it happen. And, as you have learned through the trials of this pandemic, you’ve had it inside you all along.