On A Limb with Claudia

I read this article about marriage advice and wondered what happened to the 40 years olds. It’s a little unbelievable that we are receiving marital advice from people who are married less than 10 years. What about the 7 years itch?
Or there aren’t very many married people over the age of 40. Ironically, many of our friends, who were born in our year, are currently involved in dissolving their marriages. We tend to hide out hoping that this marriage busting trend will skip our house. (Yes, kind of like the plague.)

Here’s my list of marital advice:

1. Your mother-in-law hates you. Get over it.

2. If you’re mean to each other, don’t be surprised if you break up. You’ve been screaming, sarcastic, caustic or nasty to your partner for years. Why are you surprised when s/he leaves?

3. Love each other first. If you don’t have time to love each other, make the time. Everything from raising children to financial well-being revolves around your relationship. You will fail if you don’t focus on loving each other first.

4. Acceptance goes a long way. Your partner is not perfect, but neither are you. Acceptance gives you real love.

5. Pick well. Don’t marry the guy who will some day be a great husband. Don’t find the woman who will be perfect when she (fill in the blank). Take the time to pick someone you are compatible with. Marriage researcher find picking well is the single strongest predictor to marriage longevity.

What marital advice would you give?

Filed under: Thoughts on being human....