30 yrs of marriage...this is the accomplishment that my parents achieved today. It is so amazing that I really don't know just what to say about it. I have watched the ups and the downs that they have gone through, and it is truly amazing that today they are able to look back at the roller coaster and smile fondly.

So after watching two people build a life together for that long, then there should be something that you have learned from it all...right? Well I do think that I have learned some things. Hopefully I will be wise enough to apply and build upon them in my future.

1. You really have to like one another. Love is important, of course...but at the end of the day you have to enjoy spending time together b/c guess what? 30 yrs is a hell of a lot of time to spend together. My parents are friends. Things may not be perfect, but they really make one another laugh and they get along.

2. You need your own space/life/independent identity away from one another. My dad definitely had hobbies, like karate, and these were a part of who he was. I can't really explain why this was a benefit, but I always got the impression that the happiness/relaxation/break that he got away from home made him a happier person at home.

3. Most importantly, you have to commit and stick it out...'ride w/the tide' as my friend's future mother-in-law would say. There were plenty of ups and downs b/c well...that's life and that's marriage. Its hard to share your whole world w/another person long term. However, if you break and run when things get hard, then you will never make it to the finish line bc...things will always get hard. It wasn't easy for my parents, but they really seem proud and grateful for their life together.

I'm sure this is a waaaaaaaaaaay simplified discussion on what it takes to make a marriage work. However, these are some of the things that I have observed (and heard from other long time married couples) as examples of what it took to make it this far.

Did I miss anything?