Money Changes Everything
I recently won a bunch of money. I won’t say exactly how much but it’s in the millions. It makes me feel funny even typing this. It’s enough to change the life of myself and my family. My ex-wife is the mother of my two kids. She is an amazing woman and good to the bone. We divorced six years ago because I had an affair with my current partner.
I was in a low place in my life and I messed up. She was in incredible pain but—like a saint—she allowed me to still see our kids who mean the world to me, allowed our divorce to be as pain-free as possible despite the fact that I know she was hurting. She still is close with my parents. She is respectful to me although she refuses to talk to my girlfriend.
She was actually the first person I phoned after my mom and pops after I found out I won the lottery. She was pleased for me, joked that I could take the kids on a world round trip, and that was that. Nothing else. As soon as I won, I knew I wanted to give her a significant amount. I still love her. She’s the mother of my babies and I feel like this is some small tiny way I can show her that I’m not a complete screw-up.
She deserves to know that I care despite my mistakes. She also works an awful job in the public library which pays her peanuts. She would actually be able to pursue her hobbies this way. Give our kids a better life between us. I haven’t discussed this with my ex yet, but I have with my parents, who strongly agree, and my lawyer who was very surprised but on board. But there was one person who objected…
Long story short, when I told my girlfriend, she was livid. Screaming that I’m disrespecting her, accusing me of still being in love with my ex-wife. By the way, I’m not in love with her. We’ve both grown apart, but of course, I still love her for being an excellent co-parenting partner and mother to my kids. My girlfriend is threatening to break up with me, and to be honest I’m feeling incredibly relieved over the threats. I don’t plan on changing my plans.