Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis
... may officially be the longest word in the English dictionary, but the biggest, most loaded word ever is commitment, hands down. Funny how 10 letters can mean a world of responsibility, a lifetime of sharing and a complete change of perspective. Not even those words we've come to associate with relationships (like love, trust, need, want, desire) come close to shifting the paradigm of singlehood, as commitment can.Yet we throw out words like "I love you" so cavalierly when married couples might actually do better to say "I re-commit myself to you" everyday. It's sooo cheesy I know, but consider how heavy is the vow we make when we promise to love, honor and be faithful to ONE person...
in sickness and in health...
Through common colds, stomach aches, flatulence (yikes!) all the way to the I-need-you-to-wipe-my-ass-now-please, hold-me-while-I'm puking and did-all-that-blood-just-come-from-me diseases.
for richer, for poorer...
Through possible bankruptcy, mortgages, bad investment decisions, losing a job, windfalls, managing the budgets, overspending, lavish shopping, stingy-ness, deciding how to spend the money, spending the other person's money and not making any money.
for better or for worse...
Through bad hair days, 80s fashion choices, ruts, not wanting the same things, not growing into the same person we thought, not growing period, menopause, having kids, not having kids, having too many kids, PMS, erectile dysfunction, mid-life crises, beer bellies and all those moments when the person you've just promised to cherish is the most unlovable guy on the planet without a single redeeming quality.
till death do us part.
Whoa.
There's a reason I'm still unmarried -- I don't think I'm capable of all this, or that people still live and love this way. It's easy to stay together when everything's fine and dandy. It's when the going gets tough that you see the true mettle of a couple -- those who tough it out and choose to ride out the downs of a relationship, till the next wave of love comes along.
I don't know a lot of these couples but wherever you are out there, I salute you.
posted by moan @ 10:57 PM
2 Comments:
Haha, this is probably the most entertaining 'reframing' of the marital vows that I've read. All I could picture was a happy, old couple celebrating their 50th anniv... but what scares me is whether they really did choose to stay together for so long, or if they really didn't have a choice but to ride it out... reality is probably somewhere in between, at least for most.
Will
I would have agreed with you till I met Ferdie and Irene! They're my idol couple - 13 years married and more in love than ever.
It gives me hope :-)
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