Flourishing Relationships - Some thoughts about what Marriage is all about

Does anyone ever think about what a Marriage is all about? I suspect that most people think of marriage (and I use the word "marriage" loosely to mean any kind of committed relationship) as two people living together, loving each other and sharing their life.

Life is like a bunch of Roses, pretty but thorney!

On the surface, this is true, but for a "marriage" to be really successful, there has to be more.

Each of us has some sort of vision as to how we want our lives to be. This is  fine, but when you are sharing your life with someone, each person's vision for themselves needs to fit into the vision that they have for their life together as a couple.

How often do couples sit down and discuss their visions for themselves and how they see their life together? Not that often, I suspect. How often to couples set goals for themselves to help them bring their vision into reality? Again I suspect that it is not very often.

Life together can be a bunch of roses, but unless as a couple each partner helps each other to negotiate the thorns along the way, their relationship can get very snagged. Is your relationship needing some help to be released and freed up again?

Hilary Thompson
The Out and About Therapist 
Facilitator at Flourishing Relationships Retreats