Celebrating 17 Years of Marriage

Seventeen years ago, on June 22, I married my soulmate, Brian, in a beautiful, magical Hindu ceremony officiated by the hugging saint, Amma.

What I didn’t know on that auspicious day could fill a book!

Leading up to the wedding, I had never given any thought as to what I kind of wife and partner I would be to him.

Having written and manifested my extensive “soulmate wish list,” I had high expectations of what was in it for me, but never really thought about what was in it for him.

Early on in our marriage I made a horrifying discovery about myself: I had no partnership skills!

Having run a business for many years, I knew how to be the “boss” but was clueless about how to be a great partner.

Fortunately, Brian spent a good part of his life playing team sports and working in collaborative business partnerships. He modeled how to “play well with others.” Over the years I’ve learned from him and became better at surfing the relationship waves.

A few of the most important things I’ve discovered are these:

• Love and gratitude. Every day I am grateful for his love and I make sure he knows it. We all receive love differently and one of the books that made a difference for me is Gary Chapman’s, The Five Love Languages.

• Kindness and respecting your partner are absolutely essential. I’ve learned that we will never agree on everything and respecting our differences is critical.

• Trust. This one took me awhile but eventually I came to truly understand and know that Brian always has my best interest at heart. (and his intuition is amazing!)

• Creative solutions are best. We decided early on to make our big decisions not based on what does Arielle want or what does Brian want, but rather what is best for the relationship. It’s amazing how looking from this perspective gives an instant solution.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. My next book (coming out the end of the year) has everything I’ve learned as a “student of love” in it.

Brian is my hero. I call him my love chakra on legs. He radiates love and kindness and when I grow up, I want to be more like him and I am excited and grateful about the next 17 years!

Wishing you love, laughter and magical kisses,

Arielle