Friday, September 16, 2011

Love Is All You Need by Liz Pitcavage

When I was a newly wed I felt inspired to ask my grandpa what  his secret was to his long lasting marriage.  My grandparents had been married for almost 60 years at that time,  had 6 children and 36 grandchildren with a new generation of great-grandchildren on the way.
As a newly-wed I could not imagine being in his shoes 60 years down the road.  I felt desperate for his advice.

I said "Grandpa, you and grandma have been married for so long, what's the secret?" He said "I just love her! Isn't that enough?"

His tone implied that my question was a little ridiculous, what other answer could there be? I laughed and said that yes, it was enough. I didn't know that would be our last conversation. He died shortly thereafter of liver failure.

For a long time after that conversation I thought his answer to my question was just a funny, sweet anecdote. Only now do I realize that it was the best answer he could have possibly given me.  

The secret, according to my grandpa, to a happy marriage is to just love your spouse.  Shower your spouse with love, make it your priority. The Family Proclamation says: "Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children."
Not only is it a good idea from my grandpa, it is our solemn responsibility put forth through modern revelation. At the end of the day when my husband is exhausted and throws his socks on the floor or he had a bad day at work, that is my time to shower him with love. The way you show love or the way your spouse needs to be loved is personal.  Only you know the best way to love your spouse. I just hope I can follow in the footsteps of my grandparents and fulfill my solemn responsibility.   The most important thing we can do for our spouse is to love them.


Liz Pitcavage is a wife and mother of two young children, living in Pennsylvania.  She was raised on the East Coast, but was born in Idaho and can cook a mean potato...when she wants to!  Liz loves to knit, play piano, read, and write...and she longs for the ocean on most days.  Liz has shared the gift of music with children through music and piano lessons, and she blesses many with her knitted creations.  I am blessed to know Liz through the church, here in Central Pa.  Thanks for this post, Liz!




33 comments:

  1. Oh, I LOVE this post. I remember when my husband and I were engaged, our Bishop told us that communication is very important but kindness is the most important. Love. That is what we need ;) Beautiful temple prints.

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  2. What a great post! It is so true and a great reminder. I love the old photos. :)

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  3. Thank you, with the the craziness of family life, with kids and their demands. We need to remember how and with who it all started. Making the relationship with our spouse the highest priority.

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  4. What a sweet moment with your Grandpa. And what wisdom he shared! I loved this! Thank you!

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  5. My favorite sentence is "Only you know the best way to love your spouse." The gospel gives us guidelines but it's up to us to put them into practice appropriately. And it's a good reminder of whose responsibility it really is to love our spouse. Thanks for a lovely post!

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  6. Wow, wonderful words of wisdom. Thanks for sharing.

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  7. So simple and so true. Before I started dating my husband I always thought I'd be the kind of person that would take a lot of convincing that the person I was dating was "the one." We went on a date on Friday, a date on Saturday, kissed on Sunday, and talked about marriage on Monday. When we both reflect back on how we knew so quickly and how we were so self-assured...it was that we both wanted to serve each other, and at the end of the day that's what love is: charity, the pure love of Christ, or the willingness to put another individual above yourself.

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  8. What a great reminder. thank you! :)

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  9. I love that thought..."I just love her! Isn't that enough?" I am going to adopt it in my own life. Thank you for sharing your grandfather's example.

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  10. What profound advice! Thank you for sharing it. Simple, yet Oh so true.

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  11. Thank you for this simple reminder, Liz .... and it applies equally well to my kidlets (who have been SOO grumpy this morning, which was starting to make me grumpy). Just what I needed to hear!

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  12. another great post... love the old pictures too!

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  13. I love that answer, "I love her, isn't that enough"? Love the old pictures, too. :)

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  14. So true!

    "All you need is love, love, love is all you need." Now I'll be humming the Beatles song all day.

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  15. Great reminder. Sometimes it's hard to shower love on your spouse, and that's why it's so important to do it all the time.

    Great post.

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  16. What a great reminder of such a simple truth! Sometimes we want some huge thing to do, but it always comes down to the small and simple things. Thanks for the wonderful reminder.

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  17. Love + Temple = Happliy ever after. It's the simple things that make a big difference in our every day life.

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  18. Great reminder :) love is an ACTION!

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  19. So sweet! I do my best everyday to love my husband and he does a great job showering me with love also!

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  20. What a simple yet profound answer!

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  21. I love the story you told and the lesson you took from it.

    Thanks!

    =)

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  22. "I just love her! Isn't that enough?"

    I think I'm going to post that one on my fridge for inspiration. :)

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  23. All you need is LOVE!! I try to remind myself of this every day! Thanks for the extra reminder! :)

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  24. So simple...and yet so profound! Thanks for sharing this with us, Liz! :)

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  25. Sometimes the most important things are the simplest! Thanks for posting! :)

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  26. That was very profound. Love it!

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  27. I am so touched by the comments, blown away really. What a sweet bio too, thanks for the opportunity Jocelyn!

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  28. Simply stated and beautifully said!

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  29. When I was first married, I asked my grandparents if there was anything they would change if they could start over..."just to love each other even more!" what fabulous wisdom-I agree!!

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  30. me encanta!!!!!!!me siento como en casa!!!graciasssss y besitossss

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