Kris Mares

Last night I watched a Hallmark movie. I do that a lot when waiting for Racer to get home from the track. Last night’s movie was about a couple that had been married 15 years but had lost that “spark” of romance in the midst of children and career. So, they started to date again.

Now, I’ll admit, the movie was a little cheesy. It had some good nuggets though, and reminded me once again that Racer and I need to continue to date each other. We need to continue to act in kindness toward one another. We need to continue to learn about the wild, God-sized dreams that the other has. And we need to still take time to be sweet to one another.

One of the things we love to do together is go to the movies. We don’t get to do it every month, but when we can budget for it, we love to be swept away together to an imaginary world where our reality mingles with the creative world of others. We’ve always loved going to the movies together and I hope that one day we will be like the seasoned couples we see at the weekday matinee.

Movies remind us of romance. Movies give us a common enemy to fight against (instead of each other). Movies inspire us to be braver in the world. Movies encourage us to create community where we are. Movies spur us on to deeper and bolder acts of love. Movies get us out of the box of our lives and help us find creative ways to deal with what life throws at us. Movies remind us of when we were younger.

And my frugal tip: you don’t have to actually go to the movies. You can search for free Redbox codes or checkout your local library for rentals. Or maybe you have a friend with lots of DVDs and you can borrow one from them! Just get dressed, pop some popcorn at home and snuggle on the couch.

So, today, plan a date with your spouse. Get out of the daily grind and do something sweet. See a movie. Go for a walk. Share some dessert. Pretend you have $1000 to spend and walk through the mall, talking about what you’d purchase. Just take a couple of hours and pretend that you aren’t married, get to know each other again and dream of the future together.