Cutesy names....

My brother(34) has come down to the Cape for the weekend with his girlfriend(24). As we were waiting for him (and her) to get here, we were dining at a local bar with my parents and sister. (My alternative motive for going to the bar was to finish getting my 50 names signed onto my school committee sheet so I can be on the ballot in May. Everyone in town goes to the bar on a Friday night.)B says, "I think Tommy and Jenn are going to make it". "Make it?" we ask, "Why do you think that?" "Well, they call each other cutesy names." Well, yes, they do call each other cute names and are always holding hands or touching each other, but does that make them perfect for each other? I am wondering what she thinks about her father and me? We rarely hold hands and are not often in the same hemisphere as each other. He is running a boat or riding a horse, I am doing mom things and, lately, helping my parents move. It's interesting what a 9 year old picks up on. My parents are living with us for a few weeks until their house is finished (ie gets running water). They don't hold hands and certainly have a few choice words for each other while they are re-doing a house and living with us. Yet, they have been married for 43 years. Do cute names and hand holding rank higher than the every day battle of married life in the eyes of a starry eyed kid? Evidently yes. But will it last?