When I think about what I want from a marriage, what I want from my partner as a husband, and the kind of wife I want to be for him, I think naturally of the marriage I have observed the most — my parents. They had a short courtship and a long marriage: over thirty years together.
The best things they have taught me about marriage are:
- It will not always be easy. Loving someone can be hard work at times, and there will be issues on which you will not always agree. But if you make the choice to love your partner, you can survive it all.
- When things are rocky, explain it to your children. Explain the situation the best you can so they don't think it is their fault.
- Be equals. Discuss decisions and always consider how it will affect your family.
- Laugh together even at stupid stuff. (Farts are always funny, even when you are 54).
- Cherish each other.
- Valentines Day is a crock of shit. You should show you love your partner EVERY day, not when Hallmark tells you to.
- Flowers aren't for when you screw up — they are for whenever. My dad buys my mum flowers for no reason, sometimes because she has been working really hard, to tell her he loves her, because they are reduced to $1.99 at Woolworths, or because the weather is horrible and he wants her to have some colour.
- Do stuff together, don't sit around complaining that life is boring. Make your life exciting.
What have your parents taught you?
