Why did YOUR parents get married?

[Carrie A]

Well I think my parents' marriage was practical. Mom was a late bloomer and folks were trying to set her up for fear of her being an old maid. Dad was a debonaire divorcee looking to remarry a woman with a different kind of personality than wife #1. Mom was attracted to his intelligence, education, and attempt at suaveness.- and he had a nice car. He liked her natural beauty, settled personality, and the fact that she had a career of hr own lol. Well they've kept it going for 40+ years and they are a trip.

 

[NYAmicas]

They met in the military and fell in love during basic training and were married within a year. They were very young and attractive but should have taken more time to figure out they were total opposites aside from their sense of humor and shared talent @ cracking on people.

They divorced in 7 years but are friends and they really do make a good looking couple when you see them together.

 

[Glib Gurl]

People in my family are kind of...stoic? Idk if thats the word I'm looking for, but basically no big sappy love story, soul mate thing, etc. They are from the deep south and the country (the real country, not Atlanta or some other large southern city). She says she got married bc "thats just what you did back then" and bc she couldn't afford to go to school and be a nurse like she always wanted to be, so she just went ahead and got married. Said my grandfather was tall, dark, and handsome and had a car and a good factory job. If she had not met him, her next move was going to be to move to NYC like some of the other relatives. And that he liked she was lightskinned (I know, I know, again, they are from the old deep south), with a nice shape, smart, and a good homemaker.

This sounds like MY grandparents Except in our case it was my granddad who was light skinned . . . my grandma never wanted "a dark man" Of course, the light skinned man she ended up with was a trip and a half . . . horrible husband who was a rollin' stone May he rest in peace.

 

[Renewed1]

CHILE!! I'm still trying to figure that one out!!

My parents were married for 24 years before they divorce. My mom says that was 24 years of H E L L!!!

 

[skyslady]

My grandfather made my dad do right by his baby girl!

 

[hopeful]

Glib, this is a very interesting thread. I am enjoying reading the different stories.

 

[ScorpioBeauty09]

I just realized my parents 29th anniversary is tomorrow! They always say they got married because they were desperate lol. They met my mom's first day at college (my dad was a junior) and were inseparable after that. They both had chaotic childhoods and wanted to get away from their parents. So when they met each other I guess they found someone who understood and clung to each other. They both grew up in North Carolina but my father always planned to move to California. My mom's told me more than I want to know about their relationship, timeline wise. Their relationship moved fast lol! My parents wanted to get married 7 months into their relationship but my grandmother wasn't having it.

 

[Cichelle]

My mother told me it was because they loved each other. Years later I found out she was pregnant with me before they got married. She would never admit that was the reason, though. I think she has it in her mind that it would hurt my feelings or make me upset somehow.

 

[racheljay1985]

My dad and mom met at their old glass factory job. He asked her if she wanted to smoke a blunt and she said no, yet she married the guy haha. He was in the military as well and I believe he was on leave at the time. They didn't last but 2 years but they had me and he just got remarried 24 years later. My mom is still single

 

[Imani]

This sounds like MY grandparents Except in our case it was my granddad who was light skinned . . . my grandma never wanted "a dark man" Of course, the light skinned man she ended up with was a trip and a half . . . horrible husband who was a rollin' stone May he rest in peace.

Lol, yea the color thing was big back in those days.

I didn't mean to make their marriage sound so cold, lol. Was far from perfect, but they did love and respect each other I think.there was definitely some practicality there, as I'm sure it was in a lot of marriages in those days. He worked long hours at the factory and wanted a pretty woman to come home to who could cook and clean. Which she did very well, like REALLY clean, not like how us women half clean today, house was perfect spic and span, every meal home made. And he went to work and brought the check home every two weeks.

My grandmother says she had the light skinned pretty boy too who wanted to marry her as well. He had "family money" and told her he would pay for her to go to college so she could pursue her dream of being a nurse. But she said, that he liked to have his women and basically let her know thats just how it was going to be. She couldve had nice things and money, but said thats just something she could not tolerate. And the man did end up marrying a woman who turned the other eye to his women while she sat in her fancy house. But my grandmother said thats just something she couldn't have put up with no matter how much money he had.

 

[MamaBear2012]

Awww...I love this thread. I don't know why my parents got married, and I'm not sure how they are still married, but they will celebrate 30 years this month.

I can only speculate but my mom already had a child when they met. And my dad's sister didn't want him to marry my mom because she already had a kid. My mom was from a dysfunctional family (10 children, a deceased mother, and an alcoholic father), so I'm sure that's why she was ready to get out. My dad was a nerd who wanted to be cool. So, I think that's why he was trying to hang out with my mom's brothers and family.

My dad isn't romantic, and he acts like he can't do anything around the house. I don't know how my mom puts up with it, but 30 years strong.

 

[MizAvalon]

Because they were in love. Got engaged at 18 and were together for 42 years until my Dad passed away.

 

[LovinLea]

My parents both came from Jamaican and met here in high school. They were high school sweethearts. My dad was really into the books; my mother was into the streets. My mother got pregnant during college and told my father that he couldn't stay in school forever and would have to FINALLY choose the career. My father told my mother that she would have to stop running the streets. They each swear they "saved" each other ("No, you were trying to be bad-getting into fights and partying" "Me? You would STILL be in school if it wasn't for me" )

Still together.