I really beleive, that the wedding is what you do when your in love, and the marriage is what keeps you together till you fall in love again.There are exceptions, such as abuse to either spouse, or the children. I am always a bit disgusted when a couple says, we just fell out of love, or money split us up. I was married to an abusive waste of skin. I tried EVERYTHING to reconcile, before I quit. I tried to be submissive, I tried counseling, I tried joint counseling, I tried to become more independent...When it was over, I STILL deeply grieved the marriage being over.I feel that it is a promise, and a bond between two people, papers or not. I think that if you go through the tough times, it makes the marriage stronger, that other person, is your partner to face this bad ol world.Pros and cons...The whole is greater than the sum of the parts. In other words, two people working on a problem, are going to get alot more accomplished than two people working on the same stuff seperatly. The cons, I suppose, is that you both have to be willing to work on the stuff together. It isn't always easy no matter how well you get along. You also always have more to consider than just yourself.Not married (anymore)Yes, I would love to marry my best friend someday. Even in the lousy marriage, when we DID work together, we accomplished alot.I really crave the support of a partnership.5 yrs out, unhappy why? Because there is abuse, or because someone won't give? Marriage isn't easy, but it's a promise to mend differences.