One More for the Road

The best book on marriage and travel I have found.

As we finish our series on Traveling Spouses and move into other issues, I want to point out a resource I have mentioned already, but one deserving of more attention. I have never seen a book like it anywhere. The title is On the Road Again: Travel, Love, and Marriage, by William Hendricks and Jim Cote.

Hendricks is the president of a communications consulting firm in Dallas, Texas. Cote is the corporate chaplain of Interstate Batteries, a company with a large sales force on the road. The material in this book was originally commissioned by the chairman of the board of Interstate Batteries to help his sales force maintain good marriages while succeeding in their jobs.

Hendricks and Cote are thorough. First they deal with communication between spouses, both on and off the road. Then they discuss commitment and trust and how to identify and strengthen your marriage's vulnerable spots. They are realistic about the loneliness of travel, and how hard it is to resolve conflict across the miles. A chapter on planning shows how scheduling can protect the love in a family. Finances, parenting, departure, and re-entry--all are discussed in light of traveling stresses. One important chapter shows how to keep sexual intimacy in spite of long absences. And there is even a chapter on how a spiritual foundation can help the traveling marriage, for those so inclined.

This book was published by Revell in 1998 which means readers will note a slight technology lag. But, it's still worth checking out.