Melissa Schaff

Troy

Can I have permission to enter your body? Troy asked. I raised my eyebrows and looked questioningly at the ceiling. I glanced at my client, weighing what he was asking, thinking, This (my office) is a safe space. I am infinitely protected here. If he wanted to harm me, he couldn’t be here. I haveContinue reading “Troy”

Entity

We have our home professionally cleaned once a month and have been with the same company for almost a year. I’ve had the same team of two fantastic gals come each month, but for some reason, one of the gals was different this time. I didn’t think anything of it; after all, people do getContinue reading “Entity”

Sober

“Expectation is the root of all disappointment.” Uhhh, yes. Yes, it is. When I stumbled upon that timely sentence (thank you, Fargo Forum!), I realized I needed to stop all expectations regarding Trinity. If he said he’d be home for supper, I didn’t believe him. If he said he’d help me with a project, IContinue reading “Sober”

Alcoholism

After the debacle of my starter marriage, I made sure my eyes were open when I started dating my forever husband. He, like me, was a mild social drinker. He would have a glass of wine at night, maybe a beer, maybe two. We would have more on weekends or when we were out withContinue reading “Alcoholism”

Alcoholic

I remember a time when I was 14 or 15, a tough age for a girl. I would find full bottles of alcohol hidden in linen closets, under furniture, and in the basement. I remember being so disgusted with my mom that I would loathingly pour the alcohol down the bathroom sink drain and refillContinue reading “Alcoholic”

Priestess

I saw a petite, slender woman clad in a deep emerald green velvet cloak. The hood of her cloak was large and hid her face. Tied at her waist was a golden cord with golden tassels. She walked with confidence, grace and surety. Her pace was not too fast, not too slow. I heard sheContinue reading “Priestess”

Unloveable

As a child, this petite freckle-nosed boy with unevenly cut bangs cried at the supper table one night because he wanted to move back to his old house. He begged his mom, tears streaming down his face, to be able to do so. His mom, who had recently remarried, moved her children into a newContinue reading “Unloveable”

Healing

As I said in the first blog, months have passed since I began writing this series of blogs. When I first started, I couldn’t write the Betrayal blog. I sincerely tried, but it gave me a huge helping of PTSD. It actually set me back in my healing process. I’m also acutely aware that ourContinue reading “Healing”

Aftermath

We sat on the couch holding hands. Our daughter was taking a much needed nap. We were both emotionally spent, but there was work to be done. Together, we were discussing how we wanted to move forward. He had made it very clear he wanted to remain by my side. He said he couldn’t bearContinue reading “Aftermath”

Revelation

Before all of this happened, I had made plans with my niece, Michele, my past life twin. She was born when I was six, so she is much more like a sister than a niece. She recently moved to Fargo, and we were to have a much-anticipated Girl’s Night out. All day long, though, IContinue reading “Revelation”