Strawberry Letter: When Will We Have Closure/Peace? [EXCLUSIVE AUDIO & ADVICE POLL]

Strawberry Letter: When Will We Have Closure/Peace?

Good day Steve & Shirley,

My wife and I are very big fans and appreciate the wisdom, insight and hilarity provided to people worldwide thanks to all of you! I have been married for over seven years and have known my wife since the 21st century kicked in. We have two boys, ages six and three and have been living in upstate Pennsylvania since 2006. (Some names and dates have been changed to protect those that might be harmed due to this story being told – “those” being “me”!) Anyway, since 2008, when the economy took a turn for the worse, we found ourselves struggling when prior to that we had been sailing along smoothly. My wife had a side business selling costume jewelry and I sold cosmetics and helped with hers as well. I’m not sure if the money being lower was the main cause, but my wife started becoming extremely verbally abusive toward me. I grew up in a single parent household (mom only), and I experienced some of the same treatment from my own mother, just not to the same degree. She would take any slight error or mistake to berate and attack me – all the trash didn’t go out, the cable bill was a few days late, I forgot to fold her clothes after washing and drying the laundry. Any mistake would result in comments such as, “I HATE you! I wish you’d never been born/wish I’d never met you/I don’t love you I only married you because I was pregnant/Why don’t you just go somewhere and die!”, etc., etc. I know some of this has to do with “female problems”, but there is something deeper going on that she would never share. All I would get is “I don’t have a problem – YOU DO!”. After awhile, I would just retreat into a shell and stay silent until she got over her rants. Afterward she would act as if nothing had happened, unless I had the gall to actually ask why! Then it would get worse. I would actually not be able to eat or even relax until she went to work. She works more than I do now, because I want my sons to see their dad and be raised by him, which I never experienced. The main reason for this letter is because two years ago, I started an affair (completely stupid on my part, I am well aware of) with a former co-worker. I’m not sure if I deserve forgiveness, even though it says so in the Bible, but I’m pretty sure I don’t deserve more emotional abuse. I would appreciate any words of wisdom you can provide.

Listen to Shirley and Steve respond to this letter below: