Ever heard of the man who didn't speak to his wife for twenty years?
And this is despite the fact that they lived together and raised their three kids together.
It's not uncommon for married couples not to talk to one another.
The honeymoon period rarely stays alight in a marriage after a certain time frame... or so we've heard.
But it is up to the couple to keep things going and work on their marriage. For those that choose not to, there is separation or divorce.
However, this was not the case for Okou Katayama, a Japanese man who did not speak to his wife for two decades.
In 2017, it was revealed on a Japanese reality show that Katayama had not spoken to his wife in twenty years.
The couple's son, Yoshiki, approached Hokkaido Television and shared his concern about his father nearing retirement and how he thought that this might lead to his parents' divorce.
Yoshiki and his siblings were never able to decipher the reason behind his father's coldness toward their mother, but as the couple agreed to go on the show, it was all uncovered.
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"Surprisingly, Okou was the one who initiated the conversation after 20 years of silence, telling Yumi “‘Somehow it’s been a while since we talked. As their emotional children start to tear up, Okou reveals the reason for keeping silent for so long. “You were so concerned about the kids,” he says. “I was kind of … jealous. I was sulking about it. There’s no going back now I guess.” (Oddity Central)
A surprising twist in the silence revealed something that many couples go through. The introduction of kids in any relationship has more demands on the couple, but mothers do sometimes bare more and end up neglecting their partners.
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Even though the show managed to help this couple break the silence, it was quite rare to find a man not speak to his wife for such a lengthy time frame over something that sounds so trivial.
Moral of the story: Communicate...
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