Melinda wants people to see her thriving after divorce from Bill Gates: ‘Not something I’d wish on any family’
Philanthropist Melinda French Gates said she wishes for people to see her “thriving” after her divorce from billionaire Microsoft Co-founder Bill Gates. Melinda French Gates was speaking to Elle when she talked about her divorce and how her life has changed since then.
She called divorces “painful” and said it is not something she would “wish on any family”. She was then asked about a section of her book where she described the months leading up to her divorce.
She had written that she took a trip to Santa Fe with Bill where she deduced from the photos on the walls, that the house they’d rented belonged to a couple who was no longer together. She found herself Googling the owners, trying to see where they’d ended up.
Melinda was asked, “If five years from now, someone ended up in your old house, Googling you. What do you hope they would find?”
“She is thriving on the other side of a divorce…Just thriving,” she answered.
Melinda on dating after divorce
The philanthropist said dating is not her priority right now. She was earlier linked to entrepreneur Philip Vaughn.
It would be nice to have a partner someday, she said, adding, “But again, I knew when I got divorced, I would be okay on my own. And I think that was the most important thing.”
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Bill and Melinda Gates had first met each other in 1987, shortly after Bill had begun working at Microsoft, and after seven years of dating, they married in 1994. They announced their divorce in May 2021, which was finalised in August.
Melinda’s life: ‘Unencumbered with my full voice’
Speaking to the publication, Melinda French Gates said perhaps for the first time, she is “unencumbered” and is spending her own money.
She also feels like she is the boss of her own companies and does not have to ask anyone for permission. “A woman should have her full voice, her full decision-making authority. It’s nice to have that,” she said.
Speaking on her life after crossing the age of 60, French Gates said she cares less about what people think and called herself a “recovering perfectionist”. She now tries to stay active and find moments of “discovery” in the everyday.
She can’t run every day like she used to, but she is skiing and kayaking, going on walks with friends, meeting with her two spiritual groups.
