With slightly over 50% of all marriages ending in divorce in the United States, it is a wonder nowadays how many people are still putting forth the effort in their marriages. Do they simply not care enough about the other to make the marriage succeed? Or has their so called “love” just disappeared and drifted off unto another person? There are literally an insurmountable number of reasons why marriages fail, however, marriage has changed my life for the better and I am excited about the relationship that I have with my significant other!
One of the ways that getting married to my beautiful wife has changed me is that it has made me more acutely aware of the needs of another person. Although sometimes I do make mistakes as we all do, most of the time I try to put her first in the decisions that I make (and those we make together). Perhaps this is one of the many reasons that a majority of marriages fail to succeed. With the increasingly material culture within the United States and the focus on how much stuff one can amass, it is a no-brainer that this often fails to happen. But consider this: if both marriage partners put the other first in their decision-making, what would result? What would result would probably be an excellent middle-of-the-road choice. More marriages should employ the technique of putting the other first and just maybe more of them would succeed.
Another way that marriage has changed me is in the way that I view my outlook on our relationship. Sure, we married for love as many people do, but marriage is definitely something more than just erotic love and sex. I have realized that our marriage relationship has to be about a partnership more than anything else. A partnership of growths, learning experiences, and contributions to both the bad times and good is how I believe now that a marriage should be viewed. I look at my wife as if she was an equal contributor in the relationship ups and downs. As has been said by many people, marriage is not “fifty-fifty,” but marriage is “100-100,” meaning that both involved have to give it their all.
A third and final way in which getting married has dramatically changed my life is my ability to love my wife. Before my wife and I were married, we dated about just over a year and a half. During that time, we learned quite a lot about each other and yes, I came to love her. But getting married helped me love her even more. Sometimes I sit and ponder just how much I love her and how I would do anything for that pretty little face staring straight back at me, and how I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize our love. She is the sunshine and high point of my day and I would do nothing to change that. However, sometimes she worries about me leaving her somewhere down the road, but how could I leave her? Every day my love for her grows stronger and I hope that I show her enough so that she knows it!
So then why, as I sometimes wonder, do over half of all marriages in the United States end in divorce? Maybe husbands and wives forget to look each other in the eye and ponder the love that they have for one another. Perhaps it is a failure of one or the other person to realize that marriage is about giving their 100% to the relationship, or maybe it is a failure to put the other first in financial decision making, child rearing, or some other issue. But I can definitely stand up and proudly say that because I love my wife and am devoted to our marriage, I am glad that I will not be contributing to that over 50% divorce rate in the United States!
