My favorite part of the book "A Christmas Carol", Charles Dickens narrates how Scrooge's betrothed releases him from their promise to wed. The young woman, who is never named, perceived that he had sought release, "In a changed nature; in an altered spirit; in another atmosphere of life, another Hope as its great end. In everything that made my love of any worth or value in your sight." In other words, they grew apart.
I know how that feels. I has happened to me many times, not with betrotheds, but with friends in general. There are people with whom I've drifted apart. Why? Because they changed while I stayed pretty much the same. Or the other way around. Either way, none of the relationships ever ended with a great falling out. They fizzled slowly. We moved farther and farther away from each other until we weren't in each other's orbit anymore. Our spirits changed, our lives changed, and the love that once meant so much lost its worth and value.
