Edward Snowden, the ex-CIA whistleblower making headlines now, gave up a lot to expose PRISM, the secret government phone surveillance program. He left a home in paradise -- Hawaii. He lost his consulting job at Booz Allen. And he left one stunner of a girlfriend. Yesterday BuzzFeed revealed the identity of Edward Snowden's girlfriend as Lindsay Mills, a 28-year-old dancer. While Lindsay's blog was still online, BuzzFeed gathered images and quotes. The Daily Mail did some digging on Lindsay Mills as well.
The spy with the pole-dancing girlfriend. Their story is like something out of a movie.
Lindsay appears to have been an extroverted free spirit who studied ballet at the Maryland Institute College of Art. She and Edward met in Maryland when they were both living there. Her blog (which has been taken down) was titled, "Adventures of a world-traveling, pole-dancing super hero." Edward was her opposite, introverted and kind of a nerd.
Lindsay and Edward were at a rocky point in their relationship when he moved to Hawaii. She followed him there to repair their relationship. "It has been quite an up and down emotional roller coaster since the moment I stepped off the plane" in Hawaii, she wrote. While in Hawaii she danced for the Waikiki Acrobatic Troupe.
Lindsay referred to Edward as "E" and her "man of mystery." She followed Edward around the globe, visiting 17 countries.
As Edward went public with his story, Lindsay wrote the following in her blog:
For those of you that know me without my super hero cape, you can probably understand why I’ll be refraining from blog posts for awhile. My world has opened and closed all at once. Leaving me lost at sea without a compass. Surely there will be villainous pirates, distracting mermaids, and tides of change in this new open water chapter of my journey. But at the moment all I can feel is alone. And for the first time in my life I feel strong enough to be on my own. Though I never imagined my hand would be so forced.
As I type this on my tear-streaked keyboard I’m reflecting on all the faces that have graced my path. The ones I laughed with. The ones I’ve held. The one I’ve grown to love the most. And the ones I never got to bid adieu. But sometimes life doesn’t afford proper goodbyes. In those unsure endings I find my strength, my true friends, and my heart’s song. A song that I thought had all but died away, when really it was softly singing all along. I don’t know what will happen from here. I don’t know how to feel normal. But I do know that I am loved, by myself and those around me. And no matter where my compass-less vessel will take me, that love will keep me buoyant.
Lindsay and Edward moved out of their Hawaii home on May 1. The Department of Justice is preparing charges against Edward. He just checked out of his Hong Kong hotel and his whereabouts are unknown -- even, apparently, to his girlfriend.
Will she ever hear from him again? Will they meet in secret -- or is he lost to her forever? And how would it feel to know that your boyfriend was willing to leave you for his principles? On one hand, you would love him more for his heroism; but on the other hand, how heartbreaking. Lindsay says she still feels loved.
See this video on The Stir by CafeMom.
How would you feel if your husband or boyfriend did something like this?
Image via L - fever/YouTube