Thank You, Tia Mowry, for This Divorce Palate Cleanser

I don’t need to wait until it’s 11:59 on New Year’s Eve to proclaim that 2022 has been the Year of the Messy Divorce. From the internet-breaking Try Guys scandal, to Gisele and Tom’s recent split, to the dehumanizing Depp v. Heard domestic abuse trial, it feels like we’ve been particularly privy to the most intimate—and sadly, the most brutal—parts of celebrities’ lives this year. It’s been enough to convince me that marriage is a scam, a trap never to be tampered with. Enter, Tia Mowry, who is here to switch that narrative up, showing that divorce can actually be a good and rather anticlimactic thing. (We should note here that Jezebel is on the record as being pro-divorce.)

The 44-year-old actor split from her husband, Cory Hardrict, earlier this year. On the Today Show on Wednesday, she discussed her decision to divorce, which centered herself and her own happiness. “I feel like women, we tend to focus on everybody else’s happiness, making sure that everybody else is okay—meaning our children, our friends, our family. But at the end of the day, it’s about self-love,” she said.

Rather than being a point of failure, Mowry’s decision seemed to hinge on her reinvigorated sense of self worth: “When you start to really work on yourself, love yourself, know your value and know your worth, then all of a sudden, there’s this awakening,” she explained, describing an “aha” moment she had.

After losing relatives and going to therapy, Mowry said she came to realize that divorce was the right decision for her. “I look at it as, like, a curriculum,” she said. “You’re learning, you’re growing, you’re evolving, you’re creating, and I was able to create with Cory some beautiful, amazing children.”

In a world where women’s worth is still so painfully tied to our ability to marry and have kids, it’s deeply refreshing to hear Mowry talk about how divorce is the start of a new chapter, rather than the end of the world.

And unlike many of the other celebrity breakups that have dominated headlines in recent months—jam packed with cheating accusations, domestic violence, and overly dramatic public apologies—Mowry still considers her relationship with Hardrict a “success,” even calling their divorce a “celebration.”

“It’s not about staying in something because however long you are in that situation that equals success,” she added. “It’s about really, again, are you happy? Because life is really short.”

Mowry first shared news of her divorce in an Instagram post last month. “These decisions are never easy, and not without sadness,” she wrote at the time. “I am grateful for all the happy times we had together and want to thank my friends, family and fans for your love and support as we start this new chapter moving forward in our lives.”

She also shared in the post that she and Hardrict intend to remain friends and co-parent their two children. Rather than any dirt that the two could possibly dig up on each other, what feels like the most sensational part of this divorce is that it seems like it’s the best decision for everyone involved—and everyone involved seems to agree on that fact!

While I’m not above indulging in some celebrity marital gossip sesh, there’s nothing more fulfilling than seeing someone choose their own happiness. And I won’t hold my breath, but maybe this is is a sign that 2023 might just be the Year of Conscious Uncoupling.