Til Divorce Do You Part

My own marriage has been going strong for 20+ years, and when the nearly 3-year courtship period is tacked on, my wife and I are somewhat closer to 30 than to 20. We consider ourselves to be very blessed and fortunate, but we have had to work very diligently to make it work.

Within our socioreligious circle, the divorce rate seems to be on the increase. In a conversation this past Shabbat, my wife and I counted three children of our contemporaries, whose weddings we attended, who are now divorced. Our son, who now is living out of the house in his apartment (with a roommate), will likely be in the marriage market in the relatively near future.

By all indications, the divorce rate is on the increase, in all population sectors. And regardless of how strong one thinks his or her marriage may be, anyone who claims to not be at least somewhat frightened by this rising divorce trend is not being totally honest.

Divorce has a way of messing up and complicating all aspects of life. The very first Slip Opinion issued by the New York State Unified Court System in Calendar Year 2011 is just one example of this. The case is Simkin v. Blank, 2011 N.Y. Slip Op. 00001. Here, a divorce has further complicated some of the damage done by Bernie Madoff.

I don't have any particularly useful answers to the divorce crisis. But my wife and I at least are doing our part by staying together, resolving the problems that continually arise between us, and striving towards compatible life goals. The fact that we love one another is immaterial, but it certainly makes it all far, far more enjoyable.

There is (1) a dissenting opinion in this Appellate Division decision; and (2) it reverses the decision of the trial court. On those two grounds, the case may be appealed to the Court of Appeals of the State of New York, the highest Court in the State. Given the dollar value involved, such an appeal is more likely than not.

Ah, the things I am missing by staying married (and by not having invested my money with Bernard Madoff).