Illustration by Nolan Pelletier.
Of course! It’s lovely to be able to share your Buddhist practice—or anything else important—with your partner, but if you can’t, should it really matter? Healthy couples don’t have to be just like each other. (And if you think about it, it’s probably better when they aren’t.) Does your partner give you the mental and physical space needed to work on your practice? Do you, likewise, support what’s important to them? If so, you’re fortunate, and no doubt better off than a lot of couples.
Sure, it would be nice to make the car-ride to your next retreat together, but reuniting after a long weekend of meditative introspection will be pretty sweet, too. It all boils down to mutual respect: if you and your partner are truly accepting of each other’s practice and beliefs, even when they’re not shared, you should have no problem here.
