“It’s easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled.”
There is more hope for fools than for people who think they are wise.
-Proverbs 26:12, NLT
My ex-wife fooled a lot of people.
Present company included.
I am sure I am not alone in that experience–i.e. in regard to an unfaithful partner. It seems some cheaters have an image-management super power. They just lack the character to back that image.
The fooling of other people need not be fatal for relationships following the reveal. However, I discovered Mark Twain’s proverb to accurately describe some of my relationships.
People who had been fooled by my ex were unwilling to swallow their pride and admit they were wrong about us. Particularly, some refused to apologize for their negative assessment of my character prior to the “big reveal.” They doubled down or went silent.
Obvious, such behavior was a death sentence to my relationship with these individuals. It still makes me sad thinking about it, though. I had genuine moments of joy with some of these folks in the past.
A simple apology would have paved a way to a restored and living friendship.
Instead, they refused to admit that they had been fooled and used. These individuals chose to be wise in their own eyes.
Sadly, such is part of the collateral damage of adultery. Some “friends” do not make the cut after such a betrayal. They choose their own egos over a right relationship with the faithful spouse.
That is their choice to make…
…sad as making such a choice is.
