A man had just finished reading a book called Man of the House while commuting home from work.

When he got home, he stormed into the house, walked up to his wife, pointed his finger in her face and said, “From now on I want you to know that I am the man of this house and my word is law! You are to prepare me a gourmet meal tonight, and when I’m finished eating my meal, I expect a sumptuous dessert afterward. Then, after dinner, you’re going to draw my bath so I can relax. When I’m finished with my bath, guess who’s going to dress me and comb my hair?”

She thought for a moment and responded, “The funeral director is my guess.” (from Mikey’s Funnies)


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Did you hear or read the story about the Iowa couple who were married for 72 years and died one hour apart holding hands? Their names were Gordon and Norma Yeager. Not only did they stay together for all those years, but they stayed committed for all those years. Their son, Dennis, said, “They’re very old-fashioned. They believed in marriage “‘til death do you part,” The earthly adventure ended when the Yeagers were critically injured in an automobile accident. The hospital knew of their commitment and while both had serious injuries, they were kept together where they could hold hands. Gordon died first; he quit breathing but still registered a pulse. Observers noticed they were holding hands and her pulse was being transferred to his body. One hour later, Norma died, too. At their funeral, it was arranged for them to hold hands in repose. The family said the couple will be cremated and their ashes mixed together.


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Forty-four percent of Americans ages 20 to 69 believe marriage is not necessary in order to have a committed, fulfilling, life-long relationship, reports a Zogby/AOL poll. Marriage Savers’ president Mike McManus finds the number shocking. He says, “People who are married live longer, they’re healthier, they’re happier; they’re wealthier. A man who’s single, for whatever reason, will live 10 years less than a married man; a woman, about four years less.”

Many fear if they marry they’ll end up divorced, and the antidote is to cohabit; but Rutgers University’s National Marriage Project research finds couples who live together before marriage are 46 percent more likely to divorce and significantly more likely to experience domestic violence within their relationships. McManus says, “Churches really aren’t very ‘marriage-minded’–they’re ‘wedding-minded.’ They are equipped to be able to help couples have weddings, but they really don’t know how to build marriages.” (OneNewsNow 1/8/07)


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A recent survey from the Pew Research Center, reported by USA Today, gives insight into the current view of marriage. According to the survey of approximately 2,700 people, 39 percent said marriage is becoming obsolete. This is an increase from 28 percent in a similar survey in 1978. Cohabitation has nearly doubled since 1990. The survey says that 44 percent of adults and more than half of those in the 30-49 age bracket have cohabited without marriage. Interestingly, 64 percent of those think of it as a step toward marriage. Clearly we have done much to damage marriage, and we have a lot of work to do to rehabilitate it and its image.


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According to a column in “Ripley’s Believe It or Not,” the Tujia people in China have a unique ceremony in which the prospective bride and her wedding party cry every day for a month before the wedding. They do not say if the tears are happy tears or not; but if they are not, we can only wonder how many days they will cry after the wedding. All marriages will experience times of tears. Some will be sad, and some will be happy. Let’s hope the majority are happy tears.


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On their 50th wedding anniversary and during the banquet celebrating it, Tom was asked to give his friends a brief account of the benefits of a marriage of such long duration.

“Tell us Tom, just what is it you have learned from all those wonderful years with your wife?” an anonymous voice yelled from the back of the room.

Tom responded, “Well, I’ve learned that marriage is the best teacher of all. It teaches you loyalty, meekness, forbearance, self-restraint, forgiveness—and a great many other qualities you wouldn’t need if you stayed single.”


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Marriage seems under assault lately. There is a new aspect to the disrespect for marriage. According to reports, in 1990, a man in Japan “married” his video game “girlfriend.” There was a ceremony presided over by a priest, and a reception with a disk jockey and the requisite speeches. They even had a honeymoon of sorts. The groom carried the bride with him in his video gaming device. Too bad there was no real relationship.


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