What if your marriage license expired?

What if a wedding license operated more like a drivers license and had to be renewed?

Not just a mail in renewal but a very serious reassessment of vows and values.

There should be a requirement to meet with a marriage counsellor for three meetings. During these sessions, the counsellor will determine whether the couple are ready to renew their license for another 10 years. If the counsellor feels there are fundamental problems, the couple should be encouraged to let their marriage dissolve or seek further assistance to resolve their issues.

With these steps in place, we could avoid ugly divorces, be more attuned to the way we treat our spouses, and not take for granted that the marriage carries on ad infinitum.

So how much should a marriage license renewal cost?

The answer is more than the first one.

Take this scenario. You secured a marriage license ten years ago, you married your beloved, you are still deeply in love and committed. Obviously life is never roses all the way, so you have been through some ups and downs, but you made it and you are ready to say "I do" for another 10 years. So why am I putting a higher price on the license? Because I am putting a higher price on the relationship. You have already put in a good amount of time, and now you realize just how much more your partner means to you than when you got married initially. The honeymoon phase ended, the lust period flew out the window, and what you have left is older, wiser, more mature folk who realize the value of what they have. So I say, pay a little extra to have the continuity of this great love.

Of course, the possibility is there to stay together and just be unmarried, after the license runs out, but then all benefits and spousal advantages are null and void. So I am not an advocate of that.