I am certainly no expert on marriage, but I would like to share some lessons that I have learned from being married to my husband, Bobby, for 38 years. Throughout those 38 years we have experienced different stages of happiness in our marriage. I believe that those stages can be related to a person’s life.
Over 60% of remarriages end in a re-divorce. Just let that one sink in a minute. It’s a scary statistic. If you’re like most people, you just read that and thought, “Yeah, but that’s not us.” Let me stop you right there. If you’re preparing to remarry, it IS you! You do run a higher likelihood of getting a divorce than of having a successful remarriage.
I don’t mean to sound real negative. I just want to make sure you’re being realistic. Living in a fantasy world of denial doesn’t help you prepare for the challenges that await you.
Growing your marriage into a lasting relationship involves learning to think in terms of WE. A marriage is a two person event. In the beginning the couple experiences a strong physical and emotional attraction to each other. Each is also tuned into the partner and focused on pleasing the other. They are happy and get married.
Gradually the demands of life put stresses on their relationship. They may experience a conflict between their personal happiness and their relationship happiness. It is how the couple makes room for both - personal and relationship satisfaction and contentment that helps their marriage grow into a lasting relationship.
1. It’s the easiest way to keep your family and friends informed about the wedding plans right from the start - they can visit your wedding website at anytime to get the latest updates on your wedding plans.
2. Many wedding website vendors allow guests to RSVP online via your wedding website in seconds rather than having to wait days for an RSVP to arrive in the post. Every time an RSVP is submitted, both you and your guest receive a confirmation email. Most sites will allow you to track and review all of the RSVPs received so far by logging into your wedding website account.
Marriage is an interpersonal relationship with governmental, social, or religious recognition, usually intimate and sexual, and often created as a contract, or through civil process. Civil marriage is the legal concept of marriage.
The most common form of marriage unites a man and a woman as husband and wife. Other forms of marriage also exist; for example, polygamy, in which a person takes more than one spouse (marriage partner), is common in many societies.Beginning in 2001, civil marriage in some places has been expanded to include same-sex marriage.
It can be much easier to fall in love with one’s fantasy than with a flesh and blood person. For some, their major satisfaction comes through fantasy, even when they are with someone real. For others, that filmy shadow between fantasy and reality can be very hard to detect. Some men impose their fantasies upon real women, others refuse to have on-going contact with a woman in order to maintain her status as a fantasy lover, forever enshrined in their minds and hearts. Although men who prefer fantasy over reality seem to love women, the real women they encounter may forever be strangers to them.
I have a definite bias on this subject. You may find this section difficult if you are considering a divorce or are already divorced. This section may sound harsh, but it gives voice to your children’s needs and the sometimes hidden consequences of divorce.
For over 20 years I have counseled young people ages 5-18, their families and extended families. This one event, divorce, affects children and teens’ lives profoundly and for a lifetime.