I am a better person because of my parents' divorce. Of course you would immediately think that there is some deep reason why I should feel this way, however I assure you that I believe that divorce is a positive reaction to a negative situation. The breakup of two people's marriages is never considered a joyful idea in itself, but my experiences have come to highlight the benefits of this frowned upon idea. If it were not for my parents' separation, I would never have come to accept change in my life, appreciate human individuality, or appreciate the circumstances of others. My growth began with their divorce, and their divorce began with a series of events that I will quickly explain. My parents were engaged in a heated debate over financial matters, a topic foreign to my eleven-year-old intellect. As the discussion grew in excitability and anger, the room was sucked into a suffocating density. At that moment I immediately understood where all this was leading and took my younger brother upstairs, out of harm's way. There was never any physical harm to protect him from, but it was as if I had done so to prevent his innocent mind from developing into one like mine; doubtful and angry. Why don't my parents get along? Why are they fighting? Why does my life have to be like this? Why me? Why are they so careless about our feelings? What did we do to deserve this lifestyle? Why us? I spent too much time wondering and feeling sorry for the fact that my parents didn't love me enough to be happy with each other. Among my questions always came up the little inconvenience that interrupted my parents' discussion: "Are you guys getting a divorce?" I'm not entirely sure where I first heard the word, but it became my magic word that got all... half the card... dealt. This woman, who I consider so strong, healthy and admirable, admits to me that her life of abuse led her to get involved with drugs and alcohol. Fortunately, he eventually broke out of his addiction and was able to continue living, eventually forgiving his father. He said his parents had considered it, but they never divorced and are still married to this day, but they had always wished it had been just as easy for his family to simply pull the plug on their marriage. As stated by the NCADV (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence), one in four women has experienced domestic violence in their lifetime and children who witness the abuse are also at the highest risk of developing violent behavior. To the women who are abused in front of their children, please save the next generation and get a divorce.