by Veola Burchett SALT LAKE CITY — You’re driving on I-15, when you hear a strange noise coming from underneath your car. It’s just a small noise. In fact, your spouse doesn’t even notice it since this is your car. A few days later, you hear the same little sound. Soon, the sound is a little louder. You ask yourself, "When was the last time this car had a tune-up?" You have your mechanic check out the car. It feels good to get it all checked out, even though it did take some time out of your busy schedule. Do you hear the little sound? That’s the sound of your marriage saying, "Hey, what about my tune-up? Everyone married over five minutes knows that marriages need a tune-up to prevent the bottom from falling out. Children, jobs, errands hobbies, extended family, volunteer work, everything else seems to come before attending to our marriages. And there’s that little voice that says, "things are going well. We don’t need enrichment." But just like the car, we need to take care of those little squeaks and groans that no one else hears. For the past few years the Family Life Office has invited national presenters to lead marriage enrichments. At one event, couples heard that we should do three things to improve our marriages. Once a day we should be grateful for and pray for our spouses. Once a week we should do something just for us - a walk, dinner, etc., and once a year, we should take a few hours and learn from an expert how to improve our marriages. This year we have invited Dr. James Healy of the Diocese of Joliet, Ill. Dr. Healy has been here before and was well received. This year’s presentation is titled, "Making happiness a habit," and will be presented Feb. 14. Can you think of a better day to renew your marriage? For those of you unfamiliar with Dr. Healy, he is an author, husband, father, psychologist, and conference speaker. He has been honored by the National Organization of Family Life Ministers with the Family Ministry Award. Dr. Healy has served in an advisory capacity to the Bishops’ Committee on Marriage and Family Life. He’s funny and entertaining, too. This workshop came about because so many people wanted to hear more after Dr. Healy’s first visit. He has prepared a new workshop and we here in Utah will be the first to hear it. Dr. Healy’s presentation will encourage participants to explore their Christian marriage vows and how to live them more joyfully and fully. So, whether you’ve been married just a shot time or are celebrating 70 years of marriage, Dr. Healy will help you discover new dimensions to your relationships. We really hope you will join us and others at this event. I know Saturdays are busy at your house, but making the time to act as your own mechanic and tweaking your marriage will make things run more smoothly. Registration forms can be obtained at your parish, in the Intermountain Catholic, by contacting the Office of Family Life, or by registering on the diocesan web site. Burchett is the director of the Diocesan Office of Family Life.
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