In our individualist society, both sexes are bombarded with the lie that living for your own pleasure is the most fulfilling thing you can do. //

In a 2018 interview, Ginni Thomas — who has been married to the Supreme Court justice for more than three decades — asked her husband about the best part of being on the bench.

“It’d be impossible without you. It’s sorta like, how do you run with one leg? You can’t. It makes it whole when I have my wife,” was his touching reply. //

Contrary to the deranged voices suggesting this clip is any kind of dunk on the Thomases, Clarence’s praise of Ginni reflects a beautiful truth about marriage. When two people become one, they are both part of something greater than themselves — and living for someone outside of themselves (even more true for parents of children!). Marriage and family are no substitute for finding purpose and meaning in one’s relationship with God, but they are institutions designed to reflect and complement the eternal.

While cultural, political, and career investments can all be gainful, rewarding, and even necessary — and often have meaningful human impacts — investing in another eternal human soul carries infinitely more reward (though they are far from mutually exclusive). This isn’t limited to marriage; it’s the reason parents, teachers, mentors, pastors, friends, doctors, missionaries, counselors, and anyone who serves their fellow man sees so much worth (and finds so much satisfaction) in what they do. It’s the invested time and energy that people on their deathbeds never regret.

For men and women alike, there is a deep dignity conferred by knowing that someone else lovingly looks to you and depends on you. Good men take pride in protecting and providing for their families and pleasing their wives. Good women take pride in similarly serving and loving their families, knowing that they are cherished and that, as Clarence said so adoringly of Ginni, their husbands’ lives would be “impossible” without them.