Ex-Friends & Ex-Lovers Beloved: Sticking Together Through Thick & Thin -vs- Letting Go

By Cristina Salat

How do you know when it is right to stick together with someone, working situations out in good times & bad -versus- when it is time to let go?

 

Why do some relationships in the trajectory of life leave indelible impressions that make us want to remain in touch...while other connections — even good ones with no trauma or drama involved — later on down the line, seem dry as dust; almost as if they never happened at all?

 

Yet this oddness doesn't necessarily seem to correspond with how lengthy or vital a relationship felt at the time it was originally lived.

 

An exploration into human connection from the author of HOW TO BE FREE (When The World Seems Anything But), FEEDING FRENZY: Devourers of the Newly Published Spotted -- Writers Beware, and the 'Gathering The Dreamcatchers' companion novels.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Green Flame Omnimedia
• Release date: May 29, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223056225

Cristina Salat

As a woman of the wind, I have enjoyed years navigating the urban jungles and deep blue seas I call home.Website: https://cristinasalat.wixsite.com/website Eclectic e-store: https://livefromthevolcano.ecrater.com/

Book preview

EX-FRIENDS & EX-LOVERS

BELOVED:

Sticking Together Through Thick & Thin

-vs-

Letting Go

Cristina Salat

A Green Flame Omnimedia Exploration:

Life defining moments at a time where every choice counts

Copyright

Salat, Cristina — 1st Green Flame Omnimedia edition

EX-FRIENDS & EX-LOVERS BELOVED: Sticking Together Through Thick & Thin -vs- Letting Go/Cristina Salat

Summary: Why do some relationships in the trajectory of a human life leave indelible impressions that make us want to remain in touch...while other connections — even good ones with no trauma or drama involved — later on down the line, seem dry as dust; almost as if they never happened at all? Yet this oddness doesn't necessarily seem to correspond with how lengthy or vital a relationship felt at the time it was originally lived. How does one know when it is right to stick together with someone, working situations out in good times & bad -versus- when it is time to let go?

Available in color hardcover, b/w trade paperback, + e-editions

UBL: https://books2read.com/u/breBWM

E-ISBN: 9798223056225

BW Paperback ISBN: 9798223327387

Color Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-312-50260-4

1. Relationships  2. The Magic of Conflict  3. Love

4. Friendship  5. Problem Solving  6. Break-ups

7. Personal Growth

© 2023 Cristina Salat

All Rights Reserved.

Your support is sincerely appreciated. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, without prior written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in articles or reviews.

Green Flame Omnimedia

Postal Suite 783

Volcano Hawaii 96785

BOOKS BY

CRISTINA SALAT

Gathering The Dreamcatchers

Companion Novels/Novellas:

Living in Secret Deluxe Edition

The Skin of Water:

Defending The Dreamcatchers

Esoterica

Paradise Found

Action: The Future Is Here

Living in Light

Pipsqueak: What Would The Waltons Do?

The World Is Beautiful

Illustrated Non-Fiction:

THE WORLD IS BEAUTIFUL:

Illustrated Inspiration

BODY BEAUTIFUL: Photo Essay Ruminations

on the Art of Being Nakedly Human

NEW WORLD NUDES: Pictorial Ruminations

on the New Earth Underway

BRAND NEW EARTH NUDE:

Envisioning the Birth

of a Naked New World

Literary & Screen Novels:

ROBIN, ROMEO, & JULIETTE THE NOVEL:

Not Your Typical Love Story

Alias Diamond Jones

ELEVEN-ELEVEN/Huck Finn:

Girl Pirates Extraordinaire

Swimming Lessons

W.A.R.P.

Like A Mother

Irresistibly Yours

Illustrated Picture Books

for Young People:

Step-Whales

Peanut's Emergency Deluxe Edition

Witzel's Wish

Frogdemona: Precious Pest

The Blue House

Non-Fiction/Memoirs/Story Poems/Compilations:

Home Is Where You're Happy

Home Too: Secret Springs

Home in the Third Dimension

Community: The COMPLETE Missing Manual

Hawaii Triptych

Together Alone: Story Poems

Slice of Life

2017: A Collection of Stories & Life Snippets

The Big Picture

Beloved Ex-Friends & Ex-Lovers

Ordinary/Extraordinary: A Compilation Combo

CREATIVE LIVING: From Starving Artist to Self-Employed Bliss

Maze Magic

FEEDING FRENZY: Devourers of the Newly Published Spotted—Writers Beware

HOW TO BE FREE (when the World Seems Anything But): 2023 Update

MUSICAL MUSINGS OF A MAGNIFICENT EX-MALCONTENT:

aka Lessons Learned from Andy Gibb & John Denver

UNDINE INTELLIGENCE:

A Truer Tale of Ancient Elemental Water Beings AKA Mermaid Love Spells

And Green Flame Omnimedia Slims including:

After Titanic

America The Beautiful

Summer Friends

Together With Stars

Black Holes

When To Say When

Time of The Bear

The B.I.G.

Want a free Cristina Salat e-slim?

Subscribe to the author's every-once-in-awhile

newsy alohas from the jungles of Hawaii

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE

COPYRIGHT

BOOKS BY

FREE E-SLIM

INTRODUCTION

NAVIGATING CREATION

CRADLEBOARD

RIVER RIDERS

MUSICAL MUSINGS

CLOSE CALL

PINK FLAMINGOES

JOIN THE ARMY

SHIFTING SAND

PARADISE

THE FRIENDSHIP FILE

BROKEN LOVERS

PARADISE, TAKE TWO

TOGETHER ALONE

CONCLUSION

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

INTRODUCTION

Out of the blue the other day, I heard from/bumped into a few long lost friends, along with an ex-lover.

The past friends it was easy enough to catch up with to varying degrees by email, phone, a quick wave in passing, but I caught myself debating whether or not I wanted to reach back to the ex-beloved; a person for whom I bore no ill will, yet didn't necessarily feel inspired to reopen contact either.

Watching these thoughts set certain personal brain waves & heart chambers turning as I contemplated why it is that there are some folks from the trajectory of one's human life who leave indelible impressions that can make us want to remain in touch, perhaps forever...while other relationships — even good ones with no trauma or drama involved — can, later on down the line, seem dry as dust; almost as if they never happened at all.

Or happened to someone else.

This odd reality doesn't always seem to correspond with how lengthy or vital a relationship felt at the time it was originally experienced, either. At least for me as I sit here, now taking stock, there are past friendships & loves of short duration which remain as visceral in memory as ones featuring significant partnerships/spouses, that involve individuals I'd be happy to hear from again...as well as the kind I hope never to cross paths with. in this or any future lifetime. Equally, there are prior friendships along with ex-loves who were part of my world for many significant years, on whom some emotional door inside me either seems to remain open, or have firmly closed.

In theory, you'd think if someone was noteworthy enough to be in an important relationship with at one time, even once the shape of that connection changed, unless there are reasons to hate the person (in which case some serious forgiveness work is probably in order!), just reaching out for a brief hello now & then wouldn't be any big deal.

But at least for me, with this particular past beloved, that was not what I genuinely felt like doing.

I didn't want to catch up.

Wasn't particularly curious about what they'd been up to in the plentiful years we'd been apart...nor did I particularly feel called to share all that was new in my life.

Probably being able to keep a host of real & imagined friends apprised of highlights from one's life is why a lot of folks these days maintain social media platforms such as Facebook, but that's not anything I've felt called to do.

Anyone I really want to be in touch with, I make a point of keeping up contact with. And for more peripheral connections, as a lifelong writer there are certainly plenty of fiction + autobiographical projects out there that anyone from ex's to acquaintances to prior book fans can take a look at if curious.

I did find myself inquisitive though, about how the need or desire to reconnect with those from the past — like the nature of friendship & love itself, I suppose — isn't always reciprocal.

Sometimes one party feels sure a relationship has unfinished business, while the other party does not know, feel, believe, or want this to be so. (Or perhaps just doesn't desire to undertake what it might take to finish whatever remains undone?)

Anyway, these are the ponderings from which the seed of this book — a collection of new & old looks into my own personal past connections — germinated...and, as always, I'd be delighted to hear from readers what your experiences have been.

All names within, along with occasional defining details, have been removed to protect the innocent.

Before we dive in though, I should just quickly mention two caveats:

1) The placement of tales, excerpts, + story poems in this book do not necessarily appear in any particular order of importance. The trajectory of chapters were shaped towards creating book flow; no other reasons implied.

2) Just because the conundrums of certain connections are delved into here does not necessarily equate to those relationships having been more primary than others which are not included. The stories contained between these pages are the bonds/interactions I felt called to explore at this particular time. (Who knows? If at some later point I decide to create a second volume, entirely different experiences from the past might show up.) For now, these are the ex-friendships & ex-loverships I felt intrigued to take a closer look at.

Meanwhile, isn't it funny that sometimes in the end, what you're left with after a brief intense connection — or one that lasts 20+ years — is: a poem.

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Table of Contents

NAVIGATING CREATION

The Pacific roils below

ocean of grey cloud

vast underbelly of whale shape

passing overhead

New friend in braids & bikini

dances