Different Perspectives. Marital Bliss.

A few days after my wife and I recently celebrated our 21st anniversary we spent about a week in the Dominican Republic with our kids and some friends.  One night, I found myself mesmerized by this fountain (blurry picture above).  As I sat with a drink in hand staring at it, I was spellbound with . . . how it worked.

With the streams so consistent in volume, arc and distance, I pondered if there are separate pumps for each stream.  Or, perhaps, there is a single pump for the entire fountain with the diameter of the piping varying to control the water pressure at each nozzle.  Or, maybe even, there is some air-pressure system that regulates each stream to guarantee all are consistent.

As I was deep in thought considering this critical-to-the-state-of-the-planet problem, my wonderful wife joined me and said, “this fountain is beautiful, isn’t it?”  I responded with an answer directly out of the well–trained husband handbook, “yes it is, that’s what I was just thinking.”  In a sense, this was completely true.  I just saw the beauty of the fountain in a different way. 

I spent the rest of the evening thinking about how lucky I am.  I love the fact that my wife and I have different, but very compatible perspectives on things.  She, of course, rolled her eyes when I explained how I was thinking about it, but she was more than happy to have us both enjoying the view of the fountain each in our own way.  Me too. Turns out our entire relationship works that way.  Different views of life that the other appreciates and respects.  A key to marital bliss?  Who knows, but it works for us.

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