Six years ago today, my wife and I stood in front of people, said vows we wrote ourselves, signed a marriage certificate, and become one in the eyes of the government. In other words we got married. It was a dream come true.
We've stayed married, too. I'm becoming pretty fond of this. Life doesn't make it easy. Grad school, TV, jobs, and selfish tendicies can make staying married difficult.
Every day, since January 3, 2004, we've told each other that we love one another. That's not some secret sauce that has made this all work. But it helps. Knowing that someone loves you can help you face anything, even your big, ambitious dreams.
We took this picture over two years ago:
When I look at it now, with a daughter on the way, it looks like something's missing, like there's a dream not yet true. We've always felt our lives were complete, but our definition of complete changes - and will continue to change - over the course of years. Now, complete and true dreams looks like a family of three.
Relationships work when you can understand what the other person is longing for - what it is that will help them have a complete and full life. If you haven't asked your partner what they need and want in order to be fulfilled, take today as a chance to do that. Then, you both can work together to make a dream come true.