At 500X under the microscope,
one can see the fracture of a metal that has been exposed to stress or high temperatures.
First there is the initiation, when a triggering event produces a fissure,
a distinctive line following a pattern.
In sand stone, the concentric circles of the propagation receive the name of plumose.
On the streets, the constant exposure of asphalt to rain, sun, snow and changes in temperature
produces stress fractures that also follow a predictable pattern:
either a trans-granular or intra-granular line that will further break into a matrix.
Metal engineers have name for those.
How does a marriage break is a mystery, though.
Can we apply the laws of physics to the stress fractures on a 30 year-old marriage
that has been subjected to infidelity, mental illness, immigration, relocations, and cultural differences?
What is the breaking point of love?
What is the maximum it can take before the lines open a gap?
What is the max heat before catastrophic failure occurs,
before a stainless steel love transforms into an inter metallic compound:
weak, corrupted, creepy?
