Every year, people across the globe celebrate Earth Day on April 22nd. On this day, activists and concerned citizens spread awareness about the importance of preserving our natural environment, protecting the earth from pollution and damage, and the little things we can all do to help keep the planet in good shape!

Small efforts can have a big impact, too – especially when they become habits. Things like recycling, walking/biking instead of driving, using reusable shopping bags, being mindful of water usage, and even fitting your home with energy efficient and resource saving light bulbs, windows, etc.

Earth day is wonderful for awareness and large-scale events, but to really make a positive impact, we have to make efforts to both maintain and improve the planet in an ongoing way. We can’t just think about this stuff on Earth Day…

This is actually a pretty amazing metaphor for maintaining a marriage as well!

Just think about it – we can “recycle” our happy memories to remind ourselves why we first fell in love (and why it’s worth it to stay connected), we can “plant” beautiful new experiences by getting out and enjoying life together, and just like the small efforts we can make around the house to reduce our carbon footprints, we can build small habits that keep our marriages healthy and happy over the course of each year.

Giving each other compliments, spending quality time together (away from distractions), making sure to hug, kiss, and otherwise engage in regular physical contact, communicating honestly and openly, and simply making the effort to keep your marriage a daily priority – all of these are practices you can develop to “insulate” your marriage against growing apart or unnecessary conflict.

And like Earth Day, we have holidays, anniversaries, or birthdays that give us extra reasons to celebrate or remind us of the importance of connecting to our spouses, but to really make a difference, it takes a little bit of effort every day!

This planet is our home, and it’s the only one we’ve got. Taking good care of it ensures our long-term happiness (not to mention survival). Your marriage has some parallels. It IS a defining part of your life, and taking care of it is the only way to make sure it survives and thrives!

For more advice on how to strengthen your marriage, check out the StrongMarriageNow System today!
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Dr. Dana Fillmore and Amy Barnhart, co-Founders, StrongMarriageNow.com