The Modern Marriage 101: Let’s begin
The trouble with the conceptualisation of marriage is that people often think once they arrive at their happy day, that is it: they are married, the transaction is complete, their relationship has come full circle.
This perception is entirely incorrect.
Marriage begins the moment you sign the dotted line. The relationship may be the same, and you will indeed have history, but the framework with which you will now reference your significant other has changed. You are now bound by legal implications, notwithstanding the moral and ethical bonds which henceforth make you accountable to each other.
Marriage has changedeverythingfor you.
This manual will guide you through the five key phases of a successful marriage:l’amicizia(friendship);la comunicazione(communication);l’amore(love);il sostegno(support) andla fedeltà(loyalty).
As you go forth in this new journey together, the first advice I offer you is to start fresh. Greet each other with new eyes. Rebuild your relationship from the ground up. Treat your first day as married individuals as if it were your first meeting; as if your married partner were a total stranger.
That is my challenge to you.
Go on. Introduce yourselves.
Dr Stefania Recca, PhD
Relationship Psychologist, Sex Therapist and Bestselling Author of theFirst Date to I Doseries.
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His polished brown Italian leather boots hit the curb at the taxi rank with purpose. Checking his watch, he clenched his jaw. Traffic had been worse than predicted. He tapped twice on the boot of the cab and it immediately popped open. Grabbing his designer suitcase with one swift motion, he tossed his suit bag over one shoulder and bolted through the sliding doors.
His green-flecked eyes darted quickly across the airline logos.
‘This is a final boarding call for passenger M. D’Adamo on flight TTA 874. Please make yourself known to ground staff immediately at the check-in desk. Paging passenger M. D’Adamo . . .’
Recognising the familiar red and blue crest in the distance, he ran as fast as was possible with his luggage in tow. The wheels of his suitcase clicked loudly as they rolled over the gaps between the polished tiles.
‘I’m here!’ he announced, arriving flustered at the business class check-in.
‘Mr D’Adamo?’ the attendant asked.
‘Yes. That’s me. The traffic. I . . .’ He dropped his passport and printed e-ticket on the counter.
‘Never fear, I will call down to the boarding gate to let them know you’ve arrived.’
As she did so, he lifted his suitcase onto the conveyor belt. It was underweight.
‘Is this all you’ll be checking-in?’ she asked, attaching the luggage tag to the handle.
‘Yes, that’s all.’ He adjusted his suit bag, returning his passport to the inner pocket of his attaché case.
‘Oh, and Mr D’Adamo?’ The desk attendant said his name with an air of familiarity as she handed him the boarding pass. ‘Your wife has already checked-in and is waiting for you by the gate. Head straight to the express lane at security.’ She slipped him a clearance token and smiled as tightly as her immaculate chignon.
‘Wonderful, thank you,’ he said, gathering his belongings.
‘Have a pleasant flight, and we look forward to welcoming you again soon. I’m sure a glass of something bubbly will be in order once you board the flight.’
‘Only one?’ he joked, waving goodbye and disappearing as quickly as he had arrived.
She watched him run from the check-in desk.Handsome, well-dressed, charismatic, she thought. Any woman would be lucky to call him her husband.
‘Who wasthat?’ asked a blonde-haired colleague from another counter, picking at her cuticles.
‘Matteo D’Adamo,’ she read aloud from her computer screen.
