Mental models shifting

Sitting with 7 other women we were chatting away. Supposedly about a book, but we got slightly off track. For whatever reason we ended up talking about parents who had split up and or remarried.

Following a quick round table, we quickly established that all of us had either parents who had split up or within our own marriages, there was a divorce that had happened. 

There was no one round the table who had parents that were still together and who was still married to their partner, for whom both of them it was a first time marriage.

In short, divorce is part of everyones story nowardays. It touches us all.

In fact anything else is unusual, divorce and patchwork families are the norm.

I guess this is what society has been telling us for a while, but I think this was the first time for me to see it right in front of me.

That said, the normality of this seemed perfectly fine. Clearly everyone had their own story of emotion, and difficulties, yet it just seeems part of life now in many ways and part of everyones story. There was no shame and no blame present, hurt and impact for sure, but acceptance and even better futures were described.

Life is about adapting to new norms, connecting the dots and not being hung up in what "should" be or what models were common in the past. I guess this was my moment of societal shift. Divorce is now normal. Staying together is not.

Do you have moments when you realise your mental model has shifted?

Anyone had one recently?

Have I taken too long on this one?

What had taken me so long?

Anyway, back to my abnormal marriage and my unpathchworked children.