One of the most common sayings in true love is “for better or worse”. In fact, it’s even used in traditional marriage vows as a way to remind everyone present exactly what true love means — something that lasts forever.

However, that doesn’t mean that people don’t have to work on relationships to make it lasts, or that they don’t end up having problems that have to be conquered in the future. Yet what does ‘for better or worse’ really mean for people dating and trying to find love today?

The truth is that for better or worse actually means a great number of things. On the surface, it means that a relationship by its definition should stand the test of time and not fade at the slightest thing.

You might remember a few Hollywood marriages that seem to dissolve after a year due to irreconcilable differences, but if people actually followed the ‘for better or wore’ principle, these marriages might have lasted longer.

It’s very easy to stay together during times where everything is good. Indeed, plenty of people do that every day. When everything is going well — jobs, money, etc — it’s easy to come home every day and tell your other half that you love them very much and that you want to stay together forever. Yet the other side of that saying is “or worse” for a reason: when it rains, it pours, and it always feels like bad things can really pile up.

Indeed, it’s something that ends up really testing the character of both people in the relationship. How you handle the challenges of life will be what ultimately keeps you together.

For example, a lot of people say that love fades away and people get bored, but you have to step back and ask yourself how hard you want to fight to keep love alive.

It’s not like you have to always work hard, but when things get rough, you still need to do things to remind each other that the love is still alive in your marriage. If you add children to your life, you’ll find it even more difficult because you will need to think about what your children need regardless of the challenges you and your spouse are going through.

So, what does “for better or worse” really mean? It means commitment, attention to the details of life and a desire to keep moving forward with your spouse!