The 5%

Happy Valentines Day!

I was in Nashville this week on business, and got a chance (last night) to have dinner with my friend Patrick and his wife Melissa. I've known Patrick for almost 10 years. We've worked together off and on over that period of time, and for the last few years been on the same team. What I do in Eastern NC and SC, Patrick does in TN.

When I first met Patrick, he was getting over a long term (7 year) relationship with a woman who was an alcoholic. He'd broken off the relationship, gone to therapy to figure out why he'd subjected himself to that misery for so long, and was moving on with his life. About 5 years ago Patrick met Melissa, and in her, met his match.

These are two terrific people! When you talk to either of them alone, they are full of praise for the other. There is genuine love, respect, appreciation, and admiration between them. They are in the 5%.

Usually, when one thinks of percentages, he thinks that bigger is better... In the 95% typically means at the top. But when the subject is marriage, sometimes it's better to be in the smaller group. Here's what I learned in my Pastoral Counselling class: 20% of marriages are hard work / low payoff, 75% of marriages require effort but yield some happiness, and 5% of marriages are light on effort and high in happiness and fulfillment.

Having dinner last night with Patrick and Melissa was a terrific pre-Valentine event for me. I do not have a Valentine, but the Morgans fill me with happiness all the same. It's great to see healthy love between two fantastic people. Praise God for the 5%!