Jennifer Lopez Refused to Knock on the Door of Her Childhood Home Because It Was a Reminder of Her Parents’ Divorce After 33 Years of Marriage
Jennifer Lopez is one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. Whether she’s singing, dancing, or acting, the 52-year-old pulls it off effortlessly. Lopez credits a lot of her success to the lessons and experiences of her youth, especially when it came to all the things her parents taught her. Not all of these old experiences were entirely positive, though. One in particular still hurts to this day.
Jennifer Lopez’s parents have led interesting lives of their own
David Lopez and Guadalupe Rodriguez raised their three daughters, including Jennifer, in the Bronx borough of New York City. Both immigrated to the United States from Puerto Rico when they were kids. They also shared the coincidence of both being born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, before the move. The two seemingly met and married young.
David joined the army, then worked as a computer technician for Guardian Insurance Company. Meanwhile, Rodriguez was a homemaker raising their three kids. She eventually sold Tupperware products before becoming a kindergarten and gym teacher.
In the following years, both have achieved a lot independent of their famous children. David created his own startup in Silicon Valley (detailed by Forbes). Guadalupe won big on the slots with a $2.4 million payout, reports The Sun.
Returning to her childhood home was uncomfortable for Lopez
In a 2013 piece for W Magazine, Jennifer returned to “the block” in the Bronx for a photoshoot. The whole experience seemed to bring back good and bad memories, particularly those related to the previous time she’d come home. Reportedly, she neither wanted to go inside or even knock on the door during her return to the neighborhood.
“The last time I was in there was when my mom and dad called us home to tell us that they were separating after 33 years of marriage,” Jennifer said. It would be a bad experience for anyone, but it was especially hard given everything that happened in her life up to that point.
Barely a decade earlier, Jennifer’s career had just begun to take off after a period of turmoil. At the time, she fought with her mother over her goal of becoming a professional dancer. The two even ceased communication for a time prior to her big break. Having this further shakeup to Jennifer’s family not long after establishing herself as a star no doubt soured things.
Lopez herself has experience with divorce
Like her parents, Jennifer has considerable experience with divorce. She’s been married three times, and none worked out. The first marriage, involving a man named Ojani Noa, lasted less than a year (1997-98). The pattern repeated again from 2001 to 2002 when Jennifer married her former backup dancer, Cris Judd. Following that, she quickly married singer Marc Anthony in 2004. Reportedly, their relationship was tumultuous, and the divorce was finalized in 2014.
Beyond divorce, Jennifer has dealt with a number of high-profile breakups. The first of these involved a man named David Cruz, whom she dated for nearly 10 years since high school. The next involved Jennifer’s wild relationship with rapper Puff Daddy. An arrest eventually forced the two to realize that they had to go their separate ways.
Jennifer also had relationships with former backup dancer Casper Smart and the retired Yankees star Alex Rodriguez. She was engaged to the latter and has stated that she would have married him if not for the pandemic postponing things until their breakup in April 2021.
Most famous of all, however, has been her relationship and engagement with actor Ben Affleck. While they only dated for about two years, they received a huge amount of media attention and scrutiny. Affleck cited it as one of the reasons for their breakup.
Despite this, the two clearly still had a lot of love for each other, Lopez even saying that her marriage to ex-husband Anthony was a “Band-Aid” for it. As of 2021, however, Lopez and Affleck have reunited, hopeful that things will last this time around.
Additionally, Lopez’s younger sister, Lynda, has also experienced a divorce. All in all, it seems like the whole family is no stranger to the hurt and catharsis that can come from separating from someone you’ve loved.
