Quotes from Abigail Trafford

Divorce is a death. It is the death of a relationship. It is the death of your dreams. You have to start all over.

Divorce is always experienced as a failure. It threatens a person's self-image of being good, being loved, being valued." But, he adds, it is out of failure that a person often finds the inner strength to grow and attain major achievements in life. "A lot of people make a big contribution to society out of their own suffering," he says. "A crisis forces change.

Divorce is always experienced as a failure. It threatens a person's self-image of being good, being loved, being valued.

The buzzword is companionate marriage, a relationship between two equals based on love and shared interests. Coupling is all about the quality of the relationship; its purpose is centered on mutual satisfaction, individual development (of children as well as spouses), and the joint pursuit of happiness.

Divorce often forces people to grow up. You get over your divorce by confronting the kind of relationship there was in the marriage. You realize there aren't any victims. You recognize your own complicity in the breakup. Then you learn how to carry on a relationship that works. You can't do this intellectually; you learn through experience.

She picked up her glove and hit his cheek with it, but so lightly he did not even blink. "I despise you," she said. "Quite," said Mr. Mackenzie. Jean Rhys, After Leaving Mr. Mackenzie