The mail carrier comes with more each day. The words were mostly a blur to Vivian. One day she had even asked the mail woman to stop delivering. “Not forever, just a few months…” But the mail carrier just directed Vivian to the postal website where she could put a hold on her mail. A suggestion that fell on deaf ears. Vivian couldn’t cope with opening her mail, let alone navigating some cumbersome government website.
Vivian added today’s mail to the growing pile on her desk. Despite the mountain of unopened letters, Vivian could still see her recently inked divorce decree mixed in the jumble of papers.
“Why can’t I just open the mail?” swirled through Vivian’s head.
“I wish someone would do it for me.”
Life changes are hard. Sometimes when we look back at past big moments, we may romanticize them. Create heroic narratives around conquering hardship. But when you’re in it, it’s not romantic.
Sometimes it’s a daily struggle of activity vs. apathy. Or we struggle to create new routines to match our new reality. And as you grapple with these changes, relationships, career, or finances can suffer.
Hopefully, your loved ones and your work will be understanding. Your mortgage company will be less patient.
In the coming months, I’ll be sharing money management tactics for dealing with major life changes such as divorce, job loss, aging parents, or retirement.