Sam Keen writes: "Over the course of time a true love story will undergo constant revision in mood and mode. Because every enduring relationship is destined to confront the inevitable joys and sufferings of the human condition, the narrative of love can never end with a superficial “and they lived happily ever after.”…rather…It must be cast in all the classical forms in which stories are told---romance, tragedy, irony, and comedy. It will be a Technicolor take that includes longing, struggle, frustration, ecstasy, pleasure, pain, betrayal, fidelity, alienation, reconciliation, loneliness, communion, folly, wisdom, and every human emotion. So long as we remain in communion, we will always be in the process of co-authoring a never-ending story."

These comments by Keen pretty much speak for themselves. Of course, the real challenge is when the ongoing struggles, frustrations, pain, alienation and unfulfilled expectations, hopes and dreams of the marriage become seemingly never ending and the bliss, romance and ecstacy come to a screaching halt. What do we do then, try harder, go to counseling, resign ourselves to the possibility that things may never get better, or give up, try to cut one's losses an simply walk away. If one has been married for a long time one may experience doing all these things at one time or another. On this particular day I have no answers, no words of hope, only the memory that effort, prayer, and time are sometimes not enough. We live in an imperfect world, we are imperfect people and thus our relationships are imperfect. But the paradox is that love never dies even when our relationships fail. It just comes back at another time when we often least expect it.

I'll close with some more thoughts by Sam Keen, "A Love story is likely to be more a saga of an ongoing wrestling match than a description of a perfectly graceful dance---the harmonics of love emerge from clash—come together—move apart—clash---come together—move apart—clash—come together—move apart infinitum. In the background of love one can detect the clanging of armor"