Marriage - A Life of Shared Experiences

You can tell a lot about a person by the tone with which they recall memories.  We all have things in our lives that we seek to actively remember -- things like, possibly, the day of our wedding, or the day one of our children is born.  But then again, there are lots of things that we can recall from the past when our memories are jogged by a song, or a smell, or a sound, or some other cue.  Whenever this happens to you, or when you are listening to someone going through the process of recollection, pay attention to the 'tone' of the memory.  Does the person naturally gravitate towards the positive or quirky or funny, or do they focus on the negative? 

I have just recently celebrated my wedding anniversary, which has motivated me to take the proverbial stroll down memory lane.  To say that I have been "happily married" for 17 years would possible be viewed as either a blatant lie or an optimistic exaggeration considering all the things that have happened since my wife and I joined together.  However, I think it is fair to say that our decision to marry was in part love (of course) but also in part the mutual admission that we wanted to have a shared experience.  Marriage is just that -- it is the decision to join in a life of shared experiences.  Were some experiences blissful - yes.  Was every experience bliss - no.  The joy after 17 years of marriage is to admit that in spite of the nature of the particular experience, what is important to me is that I was able to share it with my spouse.  I look forward to many more experiences together.