58. "Say it for God's sake, SAY it" / Part Three
Over the years, I had often been castigated or, at best, lectured by the few relatives and cronies who, having become aware of the story of my romance with Martin, would shake their heads in resentful condemnation of what they deemed to be a veritable manifestation of my stupidity. Even convivial gatherings would often turn into heated debates into which I was provocatively dragged. While the intensity of their excoriation varied, those “admonishers” unanimously expostulated upon the senseless and irrational “waste” of my life. Often depicted as short-sighted, foolish and, at best, a dreamer, who had become detached from reality, I was perceived by them as needing to have some sense knocked into my head. And so, earnest pieces of advice, all highlighting the vital necessity of marriage, was showered down upon me. Marriage was seen as an inevitability. Whether preceded by love or not, it was an unchallengeable expectation. My unorthodox ideas about the necessity for marriage to be foun