Its surprising how many people still marry. As everyone knows, it’s a risky proposition; the divorce rate, though down from its peak of one in two marriages in the early 1980s, remains substantial. Besides, you can have a perfectly respectable life these days without marrying.
When the Pew Research Center asked a sample of Americans in 2010 what they thought about the “growing variety in the types of family arrangements that people live in,” 34 percent responded that it was a good thing, and 32 percent said it made no difference. Having a child outside of marriage has also become common. According to a report by the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, 47 percent of American women who give birth in their 20s are unmarried at the time.
And still, demographers project that at least 80 percent of Americans will marry at some point in their lives.
“It’s a dry and shame”
Attributed to Walt Kelly…
Luke meant to write
“It’s a cry and shame.”
Walt typed better than Luke.
For many Americans, the marriage celebration has become merely an opportunity to hold a big party. Certainly the wedding industry will not let these fetes fade away – the average wedding costs $25,000.
It’s also a shame how many couples seem to care a lot more about the wedding than they do about the marriage. We did the “big thing” nearly 25 years ago because it was what our families wanted. I tell my spouse all the time I would happily marry him all over again, but not like that. Neither one of us gave a damn about all the hoopla. News flash: It is possible to have a great marriage without all the fuss, and a big party is not necessary or indicative of a successful marriage. Nothing is a cakewalk, but I believe the world a much better place with marriage than without it.