Bittersweet and anti-climatic ending

It's official.  I am legally a divorced woman.

Actually, I should have been a divorced woman a year ago, but my ex-husband's attorney is retarded and ignored his pleas for any updates.  My official dissolution date was September 2nd, but I didn't receive the paperwork until a week ago, since the paperwork was sent to my last address.

I called my ex to tell him the news.  He answered back with little emotion but I can tell he was supportive.  He wanted closure as much as I did.  We met for lunch last Monday to...celebrate? No, that's not the word.  To acknowledge, perhaps?  During lunch, he couldn't look at me, choosing to play with his food.  We made small talk, and I inquire about our friends.  I asked him if he was Ok about all of this, the divorce coming through.  He reiterated that he was fine, "It is what it is" he said.  I did tell him that I never regretted marrying him; although, I almost said "but things changed" after that.  Thank god I didn't because he looked surprised that I said that.  A good surprised.

Curiously enough, he asked me about my work, and about M, talked to me for the first time as a person, and not his wife.  Normally, he would go on and on about his work, about friend's drama, things of that nature.  But not that day.  I saw it in his eyes, it was over for him.  After almost 4 years.

I confided to M that it was a bit sad and anti-climatic, my divorce.  After all, I moved on and lived my life as a single woman since the first day of my separation.  M and I talked about how relieved and bittersweet he felt about his own divorce was, how he and his ex-wife stayed friends all of this time.  I had hoped to have something similar with my ex, but it would require extraordinary work on my part to keep it up, something I had hoped came naturally instead of some heroic measure on my part.  Perhaps?    Don't know, but I've learned not to count on anything.

Whether or not the ex and I will remain friends, one thing is for certain: it's unfortunate that of the divorces I knew of, mine was among the most amicable.  I've been subjected to my friend's divorce that dragged on for months because no one could agree on anything.  I suppose I should be lucky, neither one of us had anything of value to fight over and there were no children involved.

Still, a chapter has ended in my life, and another has begun.  I wish my ex luck happiness and luck and I hope that we can stay friends.