The Big Picture

Some friends of mine had been going through tremendous difficulty in their relationship for years - a lot of verbal fighting. At one point, one of them went on anti-depressants. To protect their privacy, I’m going to speak in general terms. They have been together about 10 years. The last 3 or 4 years were not pretty. Then about 5 months ago, they started getting along and I was touched to see how caring they were with each other.

I’m really not sure what shifted but something did.  I noticed a perceptible difference in being around them, a difference in myself and I realized more than ever that your relationship is bigger than the two of you.

Our mutual friends had been worried about this couple for some time. We were afraid it was going to spiral down and crash. When I see these friends now, we remark at how well the couple is getting along. Instead of the worried looks, we are smiling, a bit puzzled at the rather sudden shift, but still pleased about it.

If we could all remember that our relationship on one level, is affecting everybody everywhere, there might be a lot more harmony in the world.  Imagine.