What is Really at Stake in a Marriage

“There’s a darkness inside that is flooded in light and I’m frightened by those that don’t see it”
For me, this powerful line gets at what we really long for from our partners. We all have a beautiful place within us that has become darkened by our painful experiences, especially the hurts we endured from our closest people. It feels rejected and unwanted, but the light in it knows its not true. It knows that it is not damaged and problematic. The light inside lives on.
The light inside wants to find someone that sees it for what it truly is, to be loved there. It gets married.
When our partner (who we deeply hope will be the one to finally see it) does not (or seems to not), it frightens us to the core.
We then ask….Maybe the darkness IS true…and that is a fright we cannot handle. It scares us more than death.
That much is possible and therefore at stake in a marriage.