November 20, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
Ending a relationship can be one of the most devastating of life’s experiences. Making the decision to stay or go is life changing. Although leaving a relationship can rock the foundations of anyone’s existence, staying in an unfulfilling one can…
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November 18, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
The level of jealousy experienced by a partner directs whether or not a relationship can endure its ravages. Jealousy is always about fear; fear of loss, fear of betrayal, fear of being hurt. This fear comes from insecurity. You cope…
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Since homosexuality has existed in virtually every human culture and socio-economic strata, across the span of history it would seem to be naturally occurring. Since homosexual behavior is also evidenced in the animal kingdom it would seem that it occurs…
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Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, LGBT, is an inclusive acronym designed to unify a variety of individuals whose sexual orientations and practices differ from the heterosexual community. Still, it is a label. It is an identifying label that provides comfort to…
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Just as the Supreme Court of the US had to remove anti-miscegenation, abortion, and civil rights laws from state authority, it will also determine gay marriage. Majority rule, although democratic, is not what the founding fathers intended in framing the…
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The argument that marriage should be a sacred institution between only a man and a woman, under force of US law, is ultimately doomed, not because of the biology of it or the practicality of it, or the tradition of…
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May 16, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
It is said that, “Romantic love is chemically induced temporary insanity.” If you accept this as a truism, what do you do to maintain this blissful insanity after the chemical endorphins wear off? If falling in love begins with a…
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May 16, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
Picture a bacon and egg breakfast on a typical restaurant menu; two eggs, sunny side up and two crispy strips of crunchy bacon. In this representation we see the chicken is involved; whereas the pig is committed. The difference says…
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If you are going to confront a man with his faults, step back. Most of us have been conditioned to fight first and talk later. We don’t initially handle criticism well. It’s one of our weaknesses. Don’t tell anyone I…
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It is important for adult children to monitor their aging parents, just as it is important for parents to monitor their young children. Both of these life stages put individuals at safety risk. As our parents age, it is important…
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Although it may seem like the loving, caring thing to do, moving an elderly parent into your house may create more problems in the end than it solves. Before moving an elderly parent into your house there are many things…
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In the early stage of relationship there is a chemical craziness that occurs, drawing us together emotionally, physically, sexually. Call it love or call it lust. Whatever we call it, it pushes us toward intimacy with another. To some, intimacy…
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March 25, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
There was a day, early in the Twentieth-century, before women worked outside the home, before women’s liberation, before President Wilson signed the Nineteenth Amendment to the US Constitution (giving women the right to vote) when men felt that housework was…
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March 24, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
It doesn’t take owning a time machine capable of returning us to the 1950s to create family harmony. The same values that endeared us to June and Ward and Wally and The Beaver, still work in today’s blended, extended, combined,…
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“Sometimes I just want him to hold me, but he always turns it into sex.” “I want to spend time with him, talking, but he only wants to watch the game on TV.” “He never tells me he loves me…
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February 3, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
As the George W. Bush Presidency in the US pushed for a Constitutional amendment to define marriage to be a “sacred institution between one man and one woman,” the backlash of that misguided campaign woke the American public to a…
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January 16, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
Marriage is almost exclusively about sharing. The desire to share lives and resources with another is the construct that establishes marriage. Marriage is defined as the “union of two individuals.” The process of being united with another creates overlap of…
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January 16, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
Contrary to urban legend, the concept of marriage as a response to cupid’s intervention is a reasonably modern convention. Prior to the Twentieth Century marriages were more often arranged than not. Dating, as we know it did not exist, and…
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September 19, 2014 Friends and Peers
Although it might appear altruistic to help a friend by interfering in what is obvious (to you) as a bad relationship, doing so has a way of backfiring. Friends who provide listening ears and crying shoulders without unsolicited advice usually…
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The idea of allowing young children to benefit from the companionship of the elderly by combining day care and elder care is lovely. The idea of allowing the elderly to become revitalized by the energy of young children is equally…
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There was a time when the close-knit family all stayed in the same community, sharing each others duties and burdens. The Twentieth-Century brought that time to an end. Children leave home, move far away, and seek divergent life styles of…
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The words “marriage,” and “sacred” mean different things to different people. These first must be defined before the question can be fairly or legally answered. It is important to keep in mind that our goal in democracy is to protect…
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August 29, 2013 Marriage and Divorce
When my wife and I were dating we regularly sent each other cards. I’m a real Hallmark fan. I still send cards regularly to friends, family, and co-workers. Greeting card companies know me by name. They love me. I stand…
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