Sometimes love does not stand the test of time. Only true ones make lovers walk<BR>hand in hand when green pastures turn brown.<BR>Sometimes destiny lays a path that forks,<BR>does it matter whose at fault?<P>It is said a time will come when a man<BR>seeks a young woman to outlive him.<BR>Discovering my husband is interested in one,<BR>is the most crushing experience of my life.<BR>Nimbus clouds covered the sun<BR>and rain kept coming down.<BR>Betrayed, I could have raved and ranted;<BR>instead, I paused and reflected...<BR>In eighteen years, we had nary a fray,<BR>to start one now is a little tardy.<P>True love is not selfish; it is altruistic...<BR>like releasing a caged bird to freedom.<BR>Hanging on makes me a tortured soul, imprisoned. My husband still cares but<BR>competing with another only makes me suffer.<P>If late, I relish the little gestures<BR>I used to take for granted: a pat on my<BR>shoulder, a brush on my hair <BR>as he passes my chair.<BR>Week-end dinners and special occasion flowers<BR>I'm reveling on borrowed time; tomorrow is<BR>meant for another.<BR>In a little while, the clock tells me midnight is here.<BR>Neither conscience nor convenience make a<BR>marriage last longer.<P>When the going gets tough as the winter of life draws near, the tough wants to be alone.<BR>Strengthened with Faith, I am psychologically<BR>prepared to walk through a long unlit lonely tunnel, conforted that I leave my husband<BR>with a new love, and for me at the end a light.