Thought of the Day 08.12.08

Marriage is a performing art. And just like any art form, there are several ways to get it right, but numerous ways to get it wrong. For comparison, consider the art of filmmaking.

A movie needs many ingredients to succeed: a great concept, the right actors, and excellent directing all help. But even the little things matter greatly, like soundtrack, cinematography, and even sets and costumes. If any of it is missing or wrong, the end result is merely common rather than wonderful. And there’s nothing worse than a movie with huge potential that fails to properly execute a great starting idea.

So it is with marriage. There are so many things that must be done to make it beautiful. But the good news is that there are two simple ways to become better at both: observe as many examples as you can to learn what does and doesn’t work and aggressively consult people with a proven track record. Experience and useful criticism go a long way toward performing your masterpiece.