I guess it would be a wise thing to fill in the huge gap that led us to this point in our lives.
I first met my husband on January 20, 1996 at the Denny's restaurant on Main St. He looked like a train wreck as he sat in the adjoining booth swinging a coffee mug around and around on his finger. His buddies told me that he had been served with divorce papers only a month earlier after his wife and young kids flew back to their hometown for Thanksgiving. He was to fly out to meet them for the Christmas holiday. Little did he know his wife had other plans. 
Backtrack: For six months prior to Annie abandoning their marriage she siphoned the bank accounts, and sent all the bill money to her parents. Before leaving to her parents for Thanksgivng she made duplicate copies of her house key and gave them to all her friends, telling them to take anything they wanted from the house. She packed movies, toys and precious moments figurines, her husband's winter coat (which she gave to her father), plus anything of value. She left behind the children's clothing. 
Annie packed up the pantry goods into boxes and hid them in the pantry. Her husband was unaware of her plans until after she left. He dropped his wife and kids off at the airport after coming home from his second job early the next morning. Her last words were, "Look for your plane ticket in the mail! I will see you in a few weeks for Christmas!"
Annie never mailed her husband's plane ticket. Her parents had paid for her flight. They had told the couple that for their Christmas gift they would fly the family home for the holidays. It was no surprise to the husband when his own parents received a call from Annie's parents telling them that they decided to make his parents responsible for paying for his flight home. When Annie's husband called her to ask about her parents change in plans she defended them then asked him to mail the boxes she had sitting on the pantry floor. When he asked her when she planned to come home she changed the subject and then ended the call. Christmas day came and the husband called to wish his wife and children a Merry Christmas. There was no answer, Annie never came home. New Years came and so did the divorce papers.
Was it denial that sent this man into the fantasy that his wife would return with his children? Depressed, he stayed away from the home, filling his days and nights with extra duty at work.
He found the boxes in the pantry and opened them up. They were filled with canned goods and food staples. He went to his children's rooms and realized that the clothes in their drawers were untouched yet all their toys and kids videos were missing. He came home to find women in his home, who had been loading up their cars with dishes, knickknacks and furniture while he was at work. When he asked what they were doing, they responded, "Annie gave us keys and told us to take what we wanted!" The man was beside himself and this was only the beginning.
Phone calls were made to the husband's squadron First Sergeant. The wife called nonstop telling the First Sergeant that her husband was physically and verbally abusive towards her and the children. Her calls became more frequent and harrassing as she pressed the issue of being the victim of abuse. Worried that there might actually be an issue (and not realizing that the wife hadn't been in the picture for several months) the First Sergeant suggested that the husband attend Anger Management classes. The husband's classes were short lived when they realized they were dealing with a vindictive ex-spouse.
I never expected to see this man again after my first encounter with him and his buddies at Denny's. We had all parted ways that evening. My girlfriends and I had a party to crash and the night was young. . . .
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