Are You Ready For Marriage? ( Intimate Thursday)

It is the event we all dream about: our wedding day. We all picture ourselves eventually settling down with the perfect partner and build a strong and wonderful married life together and even create a family. There is a lot more to marriage besides the romance and love you feel for one another. A good and healthy marriage requires effort and team work. The both of you will enter the marriage together and therefore will have to continue to precede the marriage together. Before proposing or setting that date, take time to sit down with yourself first and ask yourself the following questions: 

 What makes this Person the One?
Obviously your first answer will be because you love him or her. That is not the question. The question is, what makes this person, out of all the other relationships you have been in, the one you want to spend the rest of your life with? It is important to make a mental list on this, to prevent yourself from entering a marriage for the wrong reasons. An example of a wrong reason would be marrying because you feel that time is running out for you. Do not pressure yourself or allow others to pressure you with the idea that you are getting old and may never have another opportunity to get married.

Prepared to play the Wife or Husband role?
Before you get too excited and jump into any marriage, first ask yourself if you are ready to be a wife or husband. Being a spouse is different than being a boyfriend, girlfriend or fiance. It requires new and more responsibilities and a lot more attention. Its not that you cannot continue to be independent, but you will have to share everything and everyone that is a part of your life if you want to have a trusting and open marriage.

Ready for a financial challenge?
Being married is not like dating where you cover the dinner bill or pay for the movie tickets. It involves new and more expensive bills. This is a subject you should discuss with your partner so that there are no unpleasant surprises later. Whether the both of you work or one of you stays at home, it is essential that you know ahead of time of how you plan to handle all financial challenges, including insurances and emergencies.

Can you stay committed and faithful?
You need to be sure that you have all your curiosities about other people out of your system. If you love your partner but still wonder how it would be to see other people, than you probably should wait to have the wedding a little later down the road. In fact, if you really feel the need to see other people, you should not be afraid to share it with your partner. Tell him or her that it has nothing to do with your love for them, but you need to see if this chapter is closed for good. Being able to commit and stay faithful is one of the biggest things that will keep your marriage together. 

Can you live with his/her lifestyles?
If you do not already live together, then really pay attention to your partner's habits and way of living. Though you cannot know everything there is to know about a person, it is good to get an idea. If he or she has certain habits that drive you crazy, it can be worked out with effort on both your parts. However, if you feel you can never get along with certain things, then perhaps the two of you should continue dating and getting to each other before making any big decisions.
These are only some questions you should definitely find answers to before getting married. If you are confused on any of them or cannot find an answer, then do not get married until you do. If you want a marriage that will be happy, healthy and last forever, you should never involve yourself in a marriage until you decide you are truly ready for it.

Culled from love sessions....