I interrupt the regular Wordless Wednesday program post to bring you this special announcement.
All routine posts for this month is preempted so I might contribute to the largest Blogosphere party ever. Don’t worry, normal posting will resume next month like clock work (I hope). Meanwhile, I invite you to stick around to enjoy the #AprilA2Z fun!
50% of young American couples are at risk for failure in their first few years of marriage. Interestingly, statistics show a decline in divorce with couples in their late 20s and 30s. Although maturity can vary, I once read something that stated the part of the brain where judgement is formed isn’t developed until the mid-to-late 20s. I think this is why this group of people fair better with their marriages than the younger group. However, there are rare exceptions and this morning, kittens & dawgs I’ll share with the story of one young couple who went Against All Odds successfully!
After nearly three years of courtship on Christmas Eve 1978, I became engaged. I was thrilled with the prospect of getting married. What girl isn’t? The happy news was received well by family and friends, but unfortunately, not everyone shared our enthusiasm.
“Why,” you ask. We were youngsters. The skeptics meant well, but they were confidant I wouldn’t finish school and I was throwing my life away over a whimsical fantasy. After all, what does a 17 and 19 year old know about true love?
There is a lot of truth behind their concerns and as a parent I see the dangers that can come from marrying too soon. I certainly do not advocate a teenager taking on the enormous responsibility. For me, I think there were two important contributions preparing me for my journey.
My upbringing. Mom had to support the family when daddy left the coal mines after diagnosed with Black Lung in the mid-70s. This meant a lot more adult responsibility was given to me, since I was the oldest and really that wasn’t an unusual thing for girls my age. I grew up fast for my years, though. My mindset was more like I’m second mother to my brothers and sister.
God’s direction. Life in rural West Virginia is different from other places and it was common for young girls to get married. I fell into the typical demographics, but I was anything other than typical. Although, I wanted to marry, I didn’t want to begin a family and that was out of the norm. My goal was clearly defined – to finish high school and disprove our critics. Who knows, maybe that was their plan all along. You know, the whole reverse psychology thing?!
We were married a week after DH graduated from college. Our motto from the get go was, “Divorce is never an option” and that was almost 36-years ago. Thankfully, we grew together over the years instead of apart. I’ve seen that happen a lot with couples. I guess you’re wondering, how did my life turn out. I finished high school and then went to college to get an associate degree in computer science. I worked several years before our first rug-rat was born. We share three children together, all of which I home-schooled K-12. My life has been happy and complete in every way. I could not imagine doing things differently ~ DH is my everything! We are blessed to have come out on top… Against All Odds.
Do you have a story to share with marrying young? Please tell us about it!
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