When They Cross the Line…Again

I didn’t think I could be shocked anymore.

After everything he’s already done—to me, to our children, — I thought I had finally built a strong enough wall. I’ve spent years untangling myself from the gaslighting, the lies, the emotional and psychological warfare. I’ve worked hard to find peace, to help my children find it too. But last night… he crossed a line I didn’t see coming.

He made a fake account on Depop. He used it to purchase items from our children. My daughter, who handcrafts jewelry with love and intention, got a sale of 3 of her pieces by someone named Johnnie Wilkins. She realized it was actually her dad when she saw the shipping label—with his real name and real address. That’s when her stomach dropped. She spoke to her brother, who had also just sold 3 pieces to the same, Johnnie Wilkins. Their dad, posing as a stranger.

Why would a father deceive his own children like that?

Why would someone go out of their way to pretend to be a stranger, to trick their kids into sending something—only for it to possibly end up in the hands of the woman he cheated with for four years? To deceive them this way is insane. If he wanted to be supportive of them, he could’ve used his actual name and given them the choice to accept the sale or not.

I sat there, stunned as they told me the following morning. Not because I couldn’t believe he’d do it—but because it just confirmed everything I’ve ever known about him. It’s disturbing. It’s manipulative. And it’s cruel.

And this is the part that hurts the most: my daughter struggled. This wasn’t just a sale gone weird. It was a violation. She poured herself into her creation, only to find out that it might be handed off to the woman he’d cheated on me with for 4 years and later married. The woman who has caused her and our family so much unnecessary pain. That is a lot of trauma being repackaged and mailed out with a shipping label.

My son? He just shook his head, baffled. His dad had given him a shirt the year before for his birthday that was for sale in his shop, and was one of the items his dad had purchased. Which made the insanity even wilder. He has accepted who his father is at this point, knows the level of psychotic we are dealing with.  But still it affects him. I saw it in his eyes. He felt it too.  

Both of them immediately refunded the purchases once they realized what was going on. And I’m proud of them for doing that—for drawing a boundary, even when it hurt. But here’s what I want every woman, every mother, every survivor reading this to know:

When they keep crossing the line, it doesn’t mean you’re failing. It means they’re proving exactly who they are.

And sometimes, that’s the clearest form of validation we get.

You’re not imagining the manipulation.
You’re not “overreacting.”
You’re not dramatic or bitter or unforgiving.

You’re someone who is healing from a lifetime of psychological warfare—and trying to shield your children from it too.

I’m not staying silent. Because silence is what kept me stuck for too long.

So this is me—speaking it out loud.

If you’ve ever felt crazy after dealing with someone like this, let me tell you: YOU ARE NOT THE CRAZY ONE. They are. And the moment you stop second-guessing what you know in your gut—that’s when freedom starts.

This isn’t just my story. It’s too many women’s stories.
And it’s time we stop carrying the shame for what they’ve done.

You are allowed to name what’s been done to you.
You are allowed to protect your children, fiercely.
You are allowed to grieve what they continue to destroy.
And still walk in healing, strength, and truth.

WE WILL NEVER BE PERFECT. But we will always be REAL. And that is enough.

If you’ve ever experienced something similar—if someone has violated your peace, manipulated your children, or tried to rewrite reality—I want you to know: YOU ARE NOT ALONE.

Drop a comment below, or reach out privately if you need a safe space to be heard.
And if this helped you in any way, share it. Someone else out there needs to read it too.

Let’s stop protecting the abuser with our silence.
Let’s speak truth. Let’s heal. Together.