Rekindle the romance

The mantra of a happy married life is to keep the romance alive.


It's easy to fall in love with someone and difficult to sustain it throughout life. In marriages too, people tend to get bored of their relationship just because that extra effort they put during courtship period goes missing over a period of time.
Relationship expert and marriage councillor Dr Kamal Khurana from Purple Alley says, "Romance is there in small gestures. A magic kiss and saying 'I love you' in the morning, a tight hug while leaving for work, a walk at night holding hands, making a cup of tea, etc. can always keep the love and romance alive. All a healthy relationship requires is constant nurturing."
Expressing love is to do things for each other and taking care of each other's needs. Generally, couples find it difficult to give much time after children as the priorities change. Yet, there are people who have well-managed their love life and have brought up kids too. Shefali Chawla who works in a shipping company shares, "I believe one should fill colours in life and keep surprising his/her partner from time to time. In order to keep the romance intact, I and my husband go out on a date every Sunday. Since our marriage, there is not even a single weekend that we have spent at home. Other than this we do celebrate days like Valentine's Day and give gifts to each other."
Everyone has their own way of expressing love. For some it's through words and for others it's through gestures. Kavita Narayanan says, "I've accepted my husband the way he is and I try to understand his point of view in every situation, and vice-a-versa. Also to keep the romance going in our relationship I try and dress-up for him. He likes sarees, so I try and wear them whenever we go out together. Also, I cook different cuisines that he likes and many a times we recollect old memories. These memories enliven us and we cherish those moments and our relationship all the more." So the crux is that when a guy learns to woo his wife every day and a girl learns to impress her husband every day, romance is always in the air.

Ways to add romance
Marriage councillor Nisha Khanna says, "Trust, care and respect are the pillars of a good marriage. Each partner must learn from one another and be each other's emotional support system." She also lists out certain ways that can add romance and blossom any relationship.
•    Whether one stays in a joint family or in a nuclear family with children, they need to spend quality time with each other daily.
•    Appreciate each other for all good things, even if they are daily activities like cooking, cleaning the house or managing kids.
•    Respect each other's feelings and suggestions and discuss your problems.
•    Forgive and forget each other's mistakes.
•    Give gifts to your partner as these are also expression of love and care.
•    Have good sexual life.
•    Look good for each other. Many a time people ignore their body and looks after marriage. This should not be the case.

--Nehaa Marya