The Value Of A Short Marriage

Drew Barrymore is selling wine now. Did you know this? I read it not too long ago in an article about her divorce. Ms. Barrymore had one of those short-lived marriages we like to mock, throwing shade on the young and famous. But out of the death of the forever love she thought she had found, she discovered another life, another love. Who knows if this business venture will last for her, but it looks to be a necessary step in her discovery of self. 

Here are five valuable things a person can learn from a short marriage, but not necessarily in this order:

1. Relational Alchemy - We aren’t islands, folks. Any insecurities between people can produce results -- negative or positive. Even if changes are negative, the potential for growth outweighs the negative.
2. Potential Growth - Any situation that brings change is an opportunity to grow.
3. Finding Yourself - With growth we get closer to knowing who we are on our path. In knowing yourself, you can make healthy life choices. Maybe your relationship, your marriage was short, but you’ve gotten closer to understanding yourself.
4. Developing Courage - A short relationship can give you courage or the ability to find your courage. It takes courage to look at a relationship and decide it isn’t working. It also takes courage to venture out after the end of what you had was your future and create a new one.
5. Time - Life really is short. You didn’t waste time. 

Americans tend to shame those who marry with their whole hearts and passions and then when the fire fizzles, separate and divorce. I’m certainly not advocating these relationships, but I’m also not discounting the authenticity of the relationship, either. There's value in any relationship as long as there’s growth.