The importance of being able to laugh together
Each Sunday is focused on Relationship/Family issues (this one posted a day late)
I think it is easy to say that you and your significant other have a good relationship when the times a good. It’s when times get tough that you discover how strong your relationship really is. The clue? Being able to laugh together in a moment of despair or just a particularly difficult time.
In my household, we are working towards the goal of paying off a massive amount of debt that is becoming almost unmanageable. Yet, for every bit of progress we make on this goal, we end up getting what amounts to a slap in the face. Last week I eliminated a little over $250 in monthly payments, which was a great victory. Then we added a little over $125 in other bills to our monthly payments. This was a bit disheartening, but we were still ahead. Then, over the weekend I went to renew the car insurance and the premium had skyrocketed. Instead of paying the $60 I had expected, I had to pay around $115. The new 6-month premium is $115, negating the work I did to drop the $250 in payments.
As a result of the insurance fiasco, we were left with only $15 in the bank and we needed to go to the grocery store. Stress and emotions were running considerably high as we were discussing this dilemma. That’s when the laughter snuck its way in.
We laughed for quite a while at the situation. It was good for the stress level, but more importantly it was good for us. We happened to be discussing money, which is one of the leading issues contributed to divorces and breakups. We may be cash poor for the time being, but we are relationship rich.
In Kathy Freston’s Five Rules to Live and Love By, rule number 3 is Relaxing when times get tough; assuming that “this too shall pass” and that is really what this is about. Times are indeed tough at my house, but we will get through it and at least we have each other to lean on and laugh with.
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