Once again I was reminded that truth is stranger than fiction by a recent news item. In a story out of Katy, Texas, a couple experienced a real-life “Pina-Cola Song” episode (the correct title of the song is ‘Escape’). The husband, who frequently used a prostitution service, told his wife he was going on a fishing trip.
Instead, he went to a hotel on the edge of town and called the service he frequented for prostitutes. A new listing caught his eye. The woman claimed to be 28 and the photo was from the neck down. He liked what he saw and made arrangements. He even haggled the price down from $200 to $150.
When the arranged date showed up, he discovered it was his 49-year old wife. The couple began fighting at that awkward moment. My initial reaction in reading the story was “Dude, That is messed up!”
Although the discovery surprised both husband and wife, they both had to know something was wrong in their marriage long before that. They not only drifted apart, they each had their own secretive, private lives as well.
My second thought concerned, “How would I deal with a situation like that?”
Prior to drifting apart, they kept secrets from each other. Although they may have maintained congenial relations, they were not connecting with each other in a real, meaningful way. When you’re not connected with your spouse, it’s only a matter of time before you start looking for other ways of getting your needs met.
The fact that they blew-up at each other tells me that they still have strong feeling for each other. They wouldn’t blow up if they didn’t have an emotional investment in their marriage. It saddens me that some couples throw away their marriage. In their case, they blew it out before throwing it away.
The good news is that you don’t have to let things get that bad. When you invest in your marriage relationship, it always pays off. Neglecting your marriage also always pays off, but in a negative way. Rather than let your marriage turn into a real-life drama people read about in the papers, you can instead take action to change that.
The “30 Days to a Better Marriage” program guides you in reconnecting with your spouse, before the two of you get to the point of haggling over the price of anonymous sexual encounters. That haggling is not really over sex, its’ about what they are willing to sell their dignity for.
Best Regards,
Jeff
