How I Reclaimed My Sexuality After 10 Years of Childrearing
It started with reclaiming my body, my space, and my own sense of self
When the man who would become my life partner walked into the bar, he flashed a smile that revealed his two perfect dimples. They were like pinpricks at each corner of his lips. My knees buckled slightly. I didn’t yet know his name, and it would be 18 months before our first date, but the physical chemistry between us was already palpable.
He told me later that he had to stop coming in on the nights that I worked because he didn’t want to risk giving in to temptation. We were both in other relationships at the time — his, toxic; mine, flat. Both of our partners would eventually leave us, then eventually beg for us back.
But they were too late. We were already tangled up together in his shabby one-bedroom apartment, sweating both from exertion and because his thermostat was stuck at 78 degrees.
The physical intimacy complemented and collided with our burgeoning emotional intimacy. We’d talk for hours, interrupt ourselves, then talk some more. It took months before we succeeded in watching an entire movie from beginning to end.
As I remember it, our undeniable mutual attraction took root and grew into love. But my partner…
