Imagine you are on vacation. Your favorite shirt is waiting for you in your suitcase. You go to put it on, only to realize it’s not there. You forgot it, and there’s nothing you can do now. That’s an experience that played out time and again for Natalie Muñoz, who split her childhood and adolescence between her parents’ houses after their divorce. Now that she’s turning 18, she tells us how she’s finding a balance that works better for her. Then, Modern Love listeners share stories about the moment they knew their parents were really divorcing and how that feeling has lingered throughout their lives.
Anna Martin: For 'The New York Times,' I'm Anna Martin.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Anna Martin: Today on 'Modern Love'—
Speaker: We ended up sitting on a bench outside the bakery,
and that's where he told me.
I never went back to that bakery.
They also had bad service,
but it was mostly the divorce thing, I would say.
Anna Martin: Stories about divorce —
Speaker: When my dad started sleeping in the basement,
I didn't think much of it at the time.
Anna Martin: — from the people who had no say in it —
Speaker: I was seven when I realized that my parents were divorced.
I knew that we would never be a family again.
Anna Martin: — the kids.
Speaker: But I would just ask,
like, well, whose house are we going to?
And whether I was asking my mom or my dad,
I would be like, darn, even though I was lying to them,
because I wanted to be with both of them,