I dated my director’s daughter about ten years ago. I actually took her virginity (at age 24, mind you) and I was given the task of telling her mother- my boss and mentor- that I was the one who finally did that deed. We were that couple who was very compatible as human beings despite heading in very different directions in life.

We remained relatively close after our split, though at a distance if that makes sense. We had a particularly intense chemistry that would have lead to further sexual escapades and an on-and-off situation with a significantly more painful end. Thankfully, we maintained a piece of that bond with sufficient distance to prevent us from digging ourselves into relational hell, and we both found love and marriage elsewhere. We count ourselves as friends to this day.

Their firstborn was a boy who is happy and healthy to this day. Her second was a girl who was born with some sort of defect that gave her a couple of years to live.

On one hand, this is longer than she was projected to live. We’ve known this was coming from the beginning and once in awhile I’ll see the latest update on FB and there have been a few scares. This seems like the real deal, end of the line though. I don’t quite know what the problem was at birth as I’ve never actually asked. But she’s always been on a tube of some kind and as of now she’s lost 60% of her kidney functionality. Anyhow, my ex has been a champion of a mother from the start. It’s damn near textbook how she’s handled even today. We’re all born to die, but I cannot imagine birthing a child only to be tasked with carrying them through death from the very beginning.

I suppose I’d feel for anyone who endured this with their child, but damn if this doesn’t strike a particularly personal chord. Her mother was a mentor of mine and really gave me an opportunity that ultimately allowed me to have the job I have right today. We shared a relationship that is fondly remembered even if it didn’t quite work, and it fucking sucks to watch this unfold. Happy new year.