Til death do us part...

When a relationship is at risk or breaks up, it is so easy for couples to hold each other responsible. Even when a relationship ends in death, such blaming occurs. “What if,” asks best selling author Rene Yarnell, “we entered our relationships realizing that they have a life expectancy—some longer, some shorter, some ‘'til death do us part’? It’s perfectly natural to want to prolong our relationships, but all too often they define their own boundaries, identifying the moments of culmination and breakdown, not so unlike the feebleness of old age signals impending death.

Here Yarnell tells the story of her own fairytale romance—an emotionally-peaked courtship and marriage that culminated in a shattered relationship. After her own difficult journey to come to terms with the breakup, she reminds us that, of all the people we have come to know or will ever know, there is something extraordinarily special about those with whom we share the emotional and sexual intimacies of living together in marriage or an equally close partnership. These relationships not only shape our life story, but also the unfolding and expansion of us as persons. It would be most unfortunate if, at the ending of such shared closeness, we found nothing to appreciate. The merit of a relationship is not necessarily in its lasting forever. Its value lies in the journey two people shared while together, and the heightened awareness that each carries forward.

Raising consciousness that a new paradigm is needed as couples embrace marriage, the author advocates for less focus on blame and guilt should it end, and more appreciation for the shared love and personal growth that was experienced while together. Hers is a message of hope - no longer viewed as a failed marriage as it closes down but one that prepares us for the next phase of life. Through the story, the objective of this refreshingly honest book is to encourage couples to emerge from marital crises more ready than ever to make sound choices - either to renew and enhance existing unions or to move on, perhaps giving birth to new kinds of relationships without the usual sense of failure. One such possibility, Yarnell suggests, is that of spiritual partnerships, a commitment to work together toward each other's personal growth.