This is a question that I often put to couples who attend the premarital workshops I present. I like the question because it requires what are called “higher order thinking skills” – a more effective way of 
engaging new information than simply receiving it in a rote learning format. The answers I receive to this question are often quite insightful. Following are a few of those insights.
Successful marriages, like gardens, must be cultivated. What sunlight, soil and water are to a garden; respect, trust and cooperation are to a marriage. Without these key ingredients neither a garden nor a marriage can survive.
Successful marriages, like gardens, need to be tended. One would not reasonably expect a healthy harvest by merely throwing seeds in the ground, then ignore them. Time and effort are required to watch over the growth of those seeds. Adjustments are made depending on perceived needs. More or less water and/or nutrients may be required until the seeds mature to become healthy plants. Just like fruit, neglected marriages can also die on the vine. One need not do anything outrageously inappropriate to kill a relationship, one need only neglect it long enough for it to whither and die.
Marriages like gardens also need to be protected. One must be vigilant to ensure that nothing is allowed into the garden that would harm it. Fences are often put around gardens to keep intruders out. This is necessary to avoid losing what one has worked hard to create. Marriage must also be guarded. Unhealthy friendships, over involvement in too many activities, excessive use of technology and social media can all threaten the sense of connectedness between spouses. Instead of making each other the first priority, these activities and interests can take precedence. Like an unwanted vine entering the garden, the wrong influences can choke the marital relationship. When such influences have slipped in, they too must be weeded out.
Don Lasell is a Registered Clinical Counsellor and is a member of the British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors. Don's areas of special interest include generalized anxiety, depression, stress, self-esteem, parenting, couple and family issues. Don utilizes Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) as well as Eye Movement and Reprocessing (EMDR) in his counselling work. In addition to counselling, Don also offers presentations and workshops on a variety of issues related to children, marriage and family. Don obtained his Masters in Marital and Family Counselling in 1994 through the Adlers School of Professional Psychology in Chicago. Don is also a former teacher who has taught in an integrated classroom setting, has been an elementary and highschool counsellor, and has served as the Director of Clinical Services for a large not-for-profit agency in the lower mainland. In addition to his work in private practice, Don is also a former peer reviewer for the Council on Accreditation. Don is married to Tanya with whom he is the parent of seven children, two of which are diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
