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| Me and my kiddos |
Wine is the perfect analogy for marriage. Thinking about this analogy and my last nine years of marriage, I'll offer a few petits gâteaux of advice to newly married couples or anyone who is considering the vocation of marriage:
Tend to the Fruit of Your Marriage. Like a good farmer, marriage requires a lot of careful, habitual and purposive work. The "honeymoon phase" is when you think you are doing all of it, and you think it is all fun and games. Marriage is about romance, but the beauty of love is best brought out in a marriage through the sometimes tedious ways you look after each other. Through self-sacrifice, each spouse is given an opportunity to till the soil, water and carefully watch over the love that is growing.
Make Sure You Pick It When It's Ripe. I'm a man, and I'll admit that I can get better at this. I miss moments and fail to see when the fruit is ready to be picked. Everyday is an opportunity to become more aware of what is "happening" in your marriage. Sports, work, hobbies and a thousand other things (including blogging) are always there to distract you from the one God has given you for life. A farmer who gains the largest return on his crop picks the harvest at just the right time. Marriage is the art of carpe diem.
Don't Expect Too Much Too Soon. Don't settle for $3 juice when $400 wine is around the corner. At the same time, give each other the opportunity to kick back and enjoy the $3 juice with some Ritz crackers and a block of cheese once in a while...
You can read the rest of this post where it was originally published at Virtuous Planet by clicking on this link....
