UNCHAINED

I've been going over the first seminary lesson again. Oh boy. I can't get past the saying, "Your word is your bond." BOND. Bondage. No thanks. Been there. Done that. The first time I got married, I was a fanatical fundamentalist. I believed if I divorced I would go to hell. I really did! Well, my husband turned out to be violent and constantlyly abusive. Psychotic, even. There were NO happy days in that marriage! Not one! Countless ministers (all male) tried to tell me I HAD to stay married. I believed them. It was a living hell. I felt stuck....trapped....hopelessly snared. The only thing that made me happy was thinking about dying. I fantasized all the time about being killed. I would be at the bank and I'd imagine a robber coming in and ordering everyone to get down on the floor. Only I wouldn't. He'd shoot me dead and I'd be released from my "bond". Finally, I realized there was no way any Higher Power would be pleased for me to live that way. With the help of a wonderful counselor, I got OUT of that nightmare. While that wasn't the last time I stuck with an abusive situation longer than I should have, I'm not in that sort of relationship now. I NEVER want to go there again! No more years wasted in suffering because of promises made before I knew better. No more. My word, therefore, will not be a chain that binds me to a hellish experience. It is given with the best of intentions, but I reserve the right to reneg if I think it is in my own best interest. I have spoken. PERIOD.