My Experience of Growing Up with Divorced Parents

Growing up with divorced parents is no longer an uncommon occurrence anymore. The daunting statistic that fifty percent of marriages end in divorce is a very real number. My memory of dealing with my family’s divorce is vague, but I remember the constant changing of houses every other weekend was a concept hard for me to grasp. For many people, it does not get any better. However I have been lucky enough to have never witnessed a downward spiral.

My parents got divorced when I was around the age of six, leaving me with a confused older sister to look up to. At such a young age, I had no clue what was enduring and was puzzled why my parents were no longer living together. I remember feeling compelled to pick a side, but it was like choosing teams for a game with no winner. As I got older everything fell back into place. I accepted the alternation of households and the split time on holidays. It was not until recently that I realized truly how gifted my parents divorce really was.

For as long as I can remember, there was always an emphasis on how irregular my parents divorce turned out. As I have come to learn, most divorces endure rigorous custody battles and often end with the parents not speaking to each other at all. Never once have I ever had to listen to my parents scream at each other. Even though I will never be apart of a stereotypical, Hallmark-family, I am forever thankful for outstanding communication between my two parents. I have no doubt that it was a great challenge to remain sane and rational throughout the divorce process, but my parents always made it clear that they wanted what was best for my sister and I.

Even through the atrocities of divorce, some good came from it. Both parents remarried some years after, and I gained two younger sisters out of it all. I am lucky to be apart of anomaly like this. My parents always demonstrated respect and communication. I think that these two factors are not only a necessity for having a successful divorce, but should also be standard in all relationships. As sad as divorce is, it has impacted and shaped me into I am today. I am grateful for the strength and deference my parents displayed and I hope that I can be half of what they are.