You were able to highlights several themes that are important to keep a marriage going successfully. Reflecting from previous experiences and learning from them is key to self-improvement. I would add having respect as one of the other key ingredients to keep a marriage going in addition to good communication. While the conversations points are important and key, I think I will be more likely to have that kind of conversation now in my mid-40s. When I was in my early 20's.....I don't believe I thought of retirement or what we wanted from life. We were just in love and thought love would fix all of life's problems.