There’s no way out

Now and then I listen to country music on the radio while I’m driving somewhere.

It helps take my mind off how much I’m spending on gas these days.

There’s a duet that’s playing on the radio now by Reba McEntire and Kenny Chesney called "Every other weekend."

The song is written from the point of view of a divorced couple who share custody of their children and must exchange the children every other weekend.

It’s a beautiful song – very sad and very touching.

While listening to it, I often think about how fortunate I am to have never been directly affected by a divorce.

My mom and dad have been married to one another for 57 years now and my wife’s parents have been married to each other for 32 years. We are both very lucky to have come from homes not affected by divorce.

Marriage is hard, raising a family is hard and life is hard. For everyone there will be difficult and trying situations.

When things get tough at our house, my wife and I often look at each other and say, "There’s no way out."

It’s our little private half-joke, but there’s real meaning behind it. It means we are committed to one another "for better or worse" for now and forever. We don’t think of divorce as an option. We’re stuck together.

But seriously, I couldn’t be happier. I got stuck with the most wonderful woman and that makes me one very lucky guy.

I know that divorce is the best option in certain situations and I know that things change and people change, but all too often I see people getting married and they don’t seem to take the commitment seriously. I’ve actually known people who said, "Well, we’ll try it and see how it works out."

I think when you go in with that attitude, the marriage may have been doomed from the "get go."

There’s another little expression we sometimes share that we borrowed from a comedian who was talking about parenthood.

While describing a somewhat unpleasant diaper-change situation, he said, "Whoa. I didn’t sign up for this."

So sometimes we look at one another and smile and say, "I didn’t sign up for this."

But it’s just a joke and we both know it.

We did sign up for it and although life can be very difficult at times, we take comfort in knowing that we will always be there for one another – no matter what.