The duty towards family is selfless love. Each must forget his own ‘I’, and dedicate themselves to the other. Each has to blame himself when something goes wrong, and not the other. You really need patience and forbearance, while impatience may ruin everything.

A harsh word may slow for months the melding of souls. The wish of having a happy marriage and overcome the obstacles that prevent achieving it must exist on both sides. Even the strongest love needs to be strengthened day by day. (Holy Martyr Alexandra, Empress of Russia)

(Translated from Cum să ne întemeiem o familie ortodoxă: 250 de sfaturi înţelepte pentru soţ şi soţie de la sfinţi şi mari duhovnici, traducere din limba rusă de Adrian Tănăsescu-Vlas, Editura Sophia, Bucureşti, 2011, pp. 106-107)