“Oh no, she’s writing about divorce again! Two blogs in a row!” No worries, everything is fine on the marriage front. But I do have something to say about today’s Yahoo! news article, Beware the Bling: Pricier Engagement Rings Linked to Higher Divorce Rate.

The article claims that the more expensive the engagement ring and/or the wedding, the higher chance of divorce the couple has. I’m not sure how sound the scientific basis is for this claim, as it’s based off of only one study – well, a “survey”, more accurately – of 3,000 American adults. They don’t make any correlation to an explanation either, stating only that the more money spent, the higher the divorce rate. I could make my own conclusions; maybe these people marry more for money than for love, or maybe they get married quickly because they can (whereas couples that are truly “in love” but not financially stable yet have to wait and save up money before they can get married). Maybe couples that struggle more financially or have to wait a longer period of time to save up the money for an engagement ring and a wedding learn to deal with adversity and have more stick-to-it-ness and can make it through the rocky part of marriage because of that. I don’t know.

I do know, however, that my own personal experience in love and life is just the opposite. My first engagement ring (for my first marriage) was probably a 15th the cost of my current ring, and my wedding was definitely 2 or 3 times as much this time – and we paid for it ourselves, whereas my first wedding was funded by my loving parents. My first marriage lasted 5 and a half years. My current marriage has blown that record to smithereens. We’ve had our fair share of challenges but survived. Is it because we’re older? More mature? More compatible? I don’t know, but I do know that I’ve shown that there are exceptions to the rule, if this article is true.

So don’t let a value, an expense, or a number scare you and make you feel doomed for divorce. On the opposing side, don’t let it give you a false sense of security either. It’s just another study, another survey, another assumption, another article to help us try to get some grasp and partial understanding of love and how to make it last. It’s ultimately up to you to do your part and try your hardest to keep love alive.

Lots of Love,

Emily