Couples today who fall in love and consider marriage now have more information than any other generation, but how they interpret it can affect them profoundly. Many of those who consider marriage are often put off by the fact that approximately half of marriages end in divorce, and they are concerned they might be in the half that will not make it. Statistics are an important part of modern life, but incorrectly interpreting them is often part of the problem they present. Modern couples, ready to tie the knot, should consider where these numbers come from before they let current statistics overwhelm their plans.
Balancing the risks
Whenever people are confronted with an important life decision, they tend to balance what they will gain against what they will lose. In the decision to marry or not, they are weighing the lifetime of happiness they want together against the pain of a divorce. They might see the statistics as a risky proposition that they have a good chance of ending their relationship through divorce, but they can rest assured they have as good a chance of remaining happily married than any other couple.
Looking at the rewards
For those who remain married for a lifetime, happiness is often the reward of the struggles they will face as a couple. They have each other to lean on in the bad times, and they have a partner to share the best life has to offer. They see their relationship as part of the group who will stay together, and they worry little about what other people will do. They are optimists, and they have a good chance to be correct in their assessment that life together can end in bliss despite the dismal numbers of marriages that fail.
Serial marriages
One of the reasons the divorce rate remains high is that divorce is no longer as difficult as it was in the past, and there are people who go through many marriages. While it was highly uncommon in the past to divorce at all, many people today get married more than once. Some of them tied the knot with their first love, and the marriage ended soon after they discovered that being young adults was not the dream they imagined. Other people get married and divorced every few years, so they are skewing the statistics in favour of a higher divorce rate. Their serial marriages make it seem as if half of all marriages will fail, but it is more likely that those who have been married several times could be more likely to be divorced.
Making a lifetime commitment to stay with another person through everything life has to offer can be a realistic dream for two people, or it might be a huge mistake for an unwary couple. Either way, statistics are not always the most reliable way to decide if any particular marriage will work. Each couple must look at how they feel about each other, and they need to trust that their love will see them through all the obstacles they will encounter together as a couple. If they believe they can come through life’s struggles as a pair, they have a great shot at retiring as a happily married couple.
