This is the story all about how Will and Jada Pinkett Smith have been happily married since 1997 but… no longer consider themselves married?
In July last year, Will told TIDAL’s Rap Radar podcast that he and his wife have reached the point in their relationship where they don’t consider themselves “married”. To add to that, in a recent episode of Red Table Talk, Jada elaborated, “It’s more of a life partnership so it’s not steeped in that day.”
She’s talking of their wedding anniversary, which falls on New Year’s Eve every year. “We don’t really celebrate that day,” she says, “because the context of our union is totally different.”
She continues, “Usually, Will, on New Year’s, likes to be in an adventure in the world somewhere. There’s no telling where he’s going to be. And I like to be inside. I don’t want to be out in the world.”
“He now has the freedom to go and have an awesome adventure of some kind.”
Also read: 100 traditional wedding anniversary gifts and their modern-day alternatives
So while they’ve been married for 21 years now, their relationship has changed over time. But don’t get us wrong, we’re totally here for it! The Smiths seem to be more in love than ever with their new outlook on life.
Will’s pretty active on social media, documenting his very many adventures racing with Lewis Hamilton and doing the #InMyFeelings Challenge on a bridge in Budapest, but he also uses the platform to talk about life and the people who make it worth living.
Also read: Parenting like the Smiths: 5 of Will and Jada's unorthodox parenting philosophies
As for his definition of love, he recently posted a video on Instagram saying, “At its core I think love is help…”
“Everybody is having a hard time. So love is really devotion to their struggle. It’s when you’re committed to helping somebody with their life. Helping them to suffer less. You know, helping them to manage their minds and their emotions. I think love is a deep desire for our loved ones’ growth and their blossoming and their all around wellbeing. When you love somebody you want them to feel good. You want them to be happy and you want to see them succeed in life.
“Love really demands an in-depth understanding of their hopes and their dreams and their fears, their needs and trauma… I think love is giving and sharing our gifts for the purpose of nurturing and empowering them and helping them create their greatest joys,” he wrote.
Also read: WATCH: What research has to say about maintaining a happy marriage
From what we can see, Will and Jada, after many years of marriage, don’t need to be celebrating any anniversaries – they’re way beyond that. They’ve grown so much together and it’s only strengthened their relationship, but they’re now in a space where they can be full and complete all on their own, still knowing that after every adventure out in the world, they can always come home to each other.
Will concludes,
“We refer to ourselves as life partners, where you get into that space where you realise you are literally with somebody for the rest of your life. There’s no deal breakers. There’s nothing she could do – ever. Nothing that would break our relationship. She has my support till death and it feels so good to get to that space.”
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