I got some good advice this morning from my parents who have been happily married for more than 30 years. They said, “one year at a time.” Simple, but profound, because I mean, who else can one do marriage but a year a time?
I want to add to that though. Yes, take it one year at a time, but also plan, produce, play and protect together because the version of the person you marry may not be the same version of the person you’re married to a year, two or even 10 years later.
Plan: Plan your individual futures, but also plan your collective future. It’s important to work on the future of US.
Produce: Planning is useless without producing value for yourselves and for your marriage. Value should not only be thought about, it should be created.
Play: I mean, this one is simple. Life can be challenging, but don’t forget to have fun while you’re on the journey. It’s ok to make a fool of yourself sometimes. Lighten up and don’t take yourself too seriously. We’re here for a good time, not a long time. So, we may as well laugh for much of the time.
Protect: Protect the sanctity of your marriage. Protect each other emotionally, spiritually and physically. In all things God comes first, your wife after.
There’s nobody else in this world that I would rather be sharing those 4Ps with. My wife, Kemesha, has been my source of comfort, my best friend, my muse and my inspiration. What a blessing it is to call her my Wife and now, mother of my son, Alexander John-Lloyd Swaby. I credit any major growth of self to her as she has made me a better man; a kinder, more thoughtful man and I’m so excited about spending the rest of my life with her.
Happy Anniversary to US.
Originally published on gordonswaby.com on 2020-11-30 (recovered from the Internet Archive).