Wedding Ring Shop
WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT?

When I was 20 years old I thought I had found my true love, however, from my father's perspective she was a poor choice. I tried to reason with Dad by insisting from my heart: “I love her.” His seemingly callous reply was, “Any fool can fall in love.” I couldn’t believe how little he thought of the importance of love.

Today, after being in the engagement and wedding ring business for more than 25 years, I have witnessed more couples going through the process of young love more than almost anyone in Hawaii. I have felt a great calling over the years to understand and contribute to a joyous and memorable experience in life’s most significant event ? marriage.

We enjoy being swept away in the bliss of romantic love: A flower girl in pure innocence carefully steps down the aisle, gracefully dropping rose petals while all the wedding guests watch her fondly. At her young age, she already “knows” that her goal in life is to someday meet her true love, her Prince Charming and live happily ever after. 'Falling in love' is idealized as magical in the movies, on television and in music. After all, “All you need is love.”

The journey for many newlyweds begins with a romance made in Heaven and a wedding celebration filled with starlight excitement. But once cake has been eaten, roses wilted and the beaded silk gown stored, each partner starts to wonder, “How long can we keep our Camelot of romantic love going?”

Choosing the right partner is critical but how does one do that? In the book “Mastery of Love,” Don Miguel Ruiz writes that “The right woman for you is the woman you love just the way she is, the woman you don’t have the need to change at all."

And yet even with that “right” person, there will be many challenges and lessons in the relationship of marriage. Many experts say the key to a successful marriage is communication. However, communication without the right intent and level of consciousness can be futile.

While communication is necessary, there is a much more powerful influence in successful marriages and that is the power of love, not romantic love but a love that manifests deep caring and compassion, truth and action. It is a love about giving fully, forgiving; doing, not just thinking or feeling. A love that understands the need for self awareness and personal growth. And this love is best understood by the spiritual guidance of a higher power.

My 'true love' back at age 20 somehow didn't work out. My father's words ring true more than you could know.  I subsequently went on to marry my present wife of 25 years and we have two sons.

And as I, myself, still struggle with love and life, it is my vision that the precious rings from The Wedding Ring Shop become sacred symbols and joyous reminders of that special love that make our customer's marriages successful. After all, love has a lot to do with it.