• My mom told me my dad wanted a divorce six days after Christmas. • I was 34 and the news crushed me. • They are happier now that they're not together, and their divorce strengthened my marriage.

Six days after Christmas, my mom Facetimed me, with an urgency in her voice I had only heard when she told me about my aunt's death.

"I need to tell you something," she said, "Your dad wants a divorce." We hung up, and I collapsed on the couch, binge-sobbing through a season of "Gilmore Girls."

At 34 years old, I had only ever known my parents together. I wasn't shocked — they had wanted different things for years — but I was heartbroken.

Both of my parents are in their late 60s. Who ends their marriage in the final third of life? It turns out, more people than I thought. According to AAR

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