The XXXX Date Part III

*Note: If you have not yet read the XXXX Date Part I and Part II, please do yourself, this story, and Don a favor and go back and read Parts I and II first.

I seems that many Christians my age are enamored with the idea of reconciliation.  I think to some degree many of them think that there is such a thing as a Biblical Break Up and that involves complete reconciliation.  Now I am not opposed to reconciliation, I just think interpersonal reconciliation of former romantic partners may involve a great deal of distance and a great deal of time, perhaps even until the new heaven and the new earth, I don’t know.  Was it reconciliation that inspired this peculiar night?  I did not even have a full week to ponder this question, before I got a text from Don saying that he had gotten back together with Brooke.  I immediately called Don.  “What the Sheol are you thinking!  You had to text me that! You couldn’t even call me up and say that like a man or independent woman!”  That conversation, like their second relationship, didn’t last very long.

I couldn’t believe it!  All of my inferences had to have been true!  There was definitely a secret plan engineered by our exes to help Brooke get back together with Don.  That probably also meant that I was right about my ex wanting to either murder or marry me.  I did check my food for either poison or a ring for the next few weeks, just as a precaution.* Don and Brooke’s second round didn’t even last a month!  How could it have lasted a month? It was destined to fail!

One of my life rules is: think thoroughly about what you are about to do before you make the decision to do it.  While I commonly break this rule, it is a hard and fast rule, when it comes to romantic relationships.  And Don was holding to it with his break up.  Unfortunately it seems like it went out the window the second time around.  In all honesty though, Don is quite a thoughtful person and probably actually put a lot of thought into his decision to get back together.  If this is the case though, how did it happen?  While many of our friends have submitted different theories, I think there are two major influences in this “misguided” decision.  You just don’t have a whole lot of avenues to meet singles in this stage in life.  While I do not agree with the following sentiment, sometimes it feels like if you missed the relationship train in college, you missed the train all together.  In addition, it seems that Don had slipped into the false reality of the XXXX date, the world of happiness where true emotional connection and recognition of dysfunction are both surprised.

All this to say, if you find your self on a date with your ex, be careful about raising your drink to take a sip, your cup probably has a hole in the bottom of it and your probably going to get water down your shirt.

*While I am still alive, there has been a strange scratch in my throat for a few weeks.