Marriage Moats- More Ways than One
Published: Thu, 07/12/12
| Marriage Moats | Caring for Marriage | ||||
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 John and I went to a Smart Marriage Conference a few years back. Thousands of people made room in their schedules for the event, and overcame obstacles like dollars and distance to get there. But few used the same itinerary. When we arrived the sense of camaraderie was palpable. I could introduce myself to someone new knowing that we both harbored a love for marriage in our marrow.
We began a new marriage group last month. Some of the people did not know each other's names. Others had connections in another realm. But as we went around the room with a round of How Are You's? we had one magnet that had drawn us to this living room. We wanted to invest in our relationships.
The stories of how each couple had found their way to the altar had unique turns. One man had asked his future wife out repeatedly, and she always turned him down. Finally he asked why.
"Because you aren't the kind of man I want to date. You are the kind of man I want... to marry..." She was derailed by her own words and said yes.
Another couple had an interesting story involving near misses. He was in the military and kept refusing an assignment to a base near the Great Lakes. It meant six more months at sea but he grabbed it. When the extended tour ran out he was cornered into the unsavory assignment. She resisted moving to a job near Chicago, but her current job was ending. She begrudgingly went. A friend invited him to a church event where he could meet girls, and he reluctantly went. She also happened to be there, and the friendship began. Things progressed at Christmas time, with the help of twelve bags of mistletoe perched over every doorway.
Scads of people have set their eyes on a strong marriage. You can get there from where you are now. The path may be direct, or convoluted, over rough terrain or a straight shot.
One of the remarkable abilities of a GPS is to give you directions based on where you already are.
Photo by Andy Sullivan
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