Finances and Divorce
Statistics show that the majority of marriages that end in divorce cite "money problems" as the number one reason for divorce.
During the current recession with an unemployment rate of 10.2% and expected to rise higher, married couples are feeling the strain. No wonder couples are nervous!
Music to Our Ears
It's tempting to live our lives filled with anxious what-ifs. Shakespeare's Almeria encourages, "Music hath powers to soothe the savage breast." Does your breast beat with anxiety and stress? Let music soothe it!
The British Invasion
Did you grow up grooving to the Beatles? Or did you place your fingers in your ears, complaining that you "couldn't understand a word they're saying"? Or perhaps you were born after their split in 1970 and don't get what the big deal is!
Wherever you fall on the Beatles spectrum, they had some undeniable classics. Take, for example, Money Can't Buy Me Love. During our current recession, were truer words ever spoken?
"I'll give you all I got to give if you say you love me too
I may not have a lot to give but what I got I'll give to you
I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love!
Say you don't need no diamond ring and I'll be satisfied
Tell me that you want the kind of thing that money just can't buy
I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love!"
Another Apple Records Great
Apple recording artist James Taylor intones this wisdom in Shower the People:
"Just shower the people you love with love
Show them the way that you feel
Things are gonna work out fine if you only will
Shower the people you love with love
Show them the way you feel
Things are gonna be much better if you only will."
Wisdom to Live By
Is this economy getting you down? Draw wisdom from the words of these rock 'n roll icons.
What is it that money can't buy? Love!
Now's the time to set aside your relationship with money and to focus attention on your relationship with the people you love.
True, substituting love for money won't pay the bills, but it's a choice you can make today that will make paying those debts a lot more bearable and keep your relationship the ultimate priority.
Keep reading. Keep learning. Keep growing!
Married for 33 years, Greg and Priscilla Hunt are certified Specialists in Marriage Enrichment, Couple Communication Instructor Trainers, and Prepare-Enrich Seminar Directors. Greg is a consultant and author. Priscilla is Executive Director of Better Marriages: Association for Couples in Marriage Enrichment.