Journey Back To Joy

After her marriage ended, Mary Jane Grant, 64, learnt to cherish life’s simple pleasures

- Mary Jane Grant

One cold Sunday morning in January 2013, Mary Jane Grant was curled up in a big chair in the beautiful home in a small town in Canada she shared with her husband of 25 years, Stuart, then 59.

A cheerful fire burned, classical music played, the dog was at his feet and the cat was curled up beside her. Sipping coffee, puzzling over the crossword, she felt warm and content.

‘With our son, Ryan, then 23, living and working in London, I thought Stuart and I were dealing well with the “empty nest”,’ Mary Jane says. ‘As it turns out, I was very wrong – because that’s when Stuart leaned forward and said he didn’t want to be married any more.’

Months of anguished talks didn’t clarify anything, and they agreed to separate. Stuart helped Mary Jane move to a one-bedroom flat in Toronto.

‘I asked myself over and over again why I hadn’t seen this coming,’ she says. ‘Having lost both parents before the age of 12, I thought I knew something about loss. But then came the call from a friend in my old town – Stuart was with someone else.’

Feeling the shame of rejection and the loss of a lifetime crashing down, Mary Jane knew once again that someone she loved was gone for good.

Well-intentioned calls from friends and family only made her feel more alone, and the reminders were everywhere.

‘I decided I needed to get away,’ she says. ‘I picked London as my destination, because I had my son there, but my goal was actually to spend some time alone.

‘I told my friends I needed to rewire my head and my heart. And to do that, I needed to be anywhere but where I was.’