If only I could take a break from my life! Like hundreds of women, journalist Cheryl Jarvis wanted to pursue a dream, but couldn't imagine leaving her marriage and home. In her new book, The Marriage Sabbatical, Cheryl explores how women past and present have left friends and family behind to follow their dreams, take a chance or just take a break from their daily life.
Would you consider a marriage sabbatical? Before you say no, take a look at what the marriage sabbatical is and isn't.
A marriage sabbatical is:
- A physical absence, not an emotional one
- A planned experience that's been discussed with those left behind
- A specific length of time -- always with a return day that says, "I'll be back"
- A move towards self -- in search of identity, focused study, knowledge, adventure, a sense of place, space to nurture dreams
- A chance to pursue a dream -- hiking the Appalachian Trail, attending graduate school in another state, retreating to an artists' colony, entering the Peace Corps
A marriage sabbatical is not:
- Abandoning responsibilities towards husband and children
- An impulsive act
- A separation in "cultural camouflage"
- A flight from others
- Going away for a weekend with the girls, visiting a spa, spending an afternoon shopping by yourself
Read more about Cheryl here.
Looking for more marriage makeover ideas? Would you give up control in your marriage to increase intimacy?
Read The Surrendered Wife: What It Is, What It Isn't, and try 5 Ways to Surrender
Check out guest expert Kathy Dawson's Practical Solutions for Your Marriage, then try it for yourself with her 5 New Ways to Make it Work
Adapted from The Marriage Sabbatical, © 2001 by Cheryl Jarvis.Used with permission of Perseus Publishing, Inc.
