I was married at 17, in part due to an unplanned pregnancy, but that in no way lessens the legitimacy of our commitment. We are still married over 36 years later, with 3 grown, independent, successful, college-educated children. We are extremely committed to our relationship and very comfortable in that commitment. We both maintain a high level of respect, reverence, and admiration for each other in addition to the love and attraction we have shared since our teenage years. We've experienced a great deal of strife, from loss of jobs and income to chronic illness, illness. Even the death of parents and family, along with handling the full range of emotions in raising children. We have moved states away from anyone we knew, successfully reintegrating our kids into a new school system, eventually assisting them into college. I've navigated a relationship through thick and thin, learning to turn into our marriage rather than away to solidify our bond into the tempered steel strength it is today.