The renewable marriage license is an idea whose time is arriving.

Most Americans get divorced. But the vows made by a couple being married are "forever." Clearly, the practice of marriage and the fantasy of marriage are at odds. Marriage is expensive business, particularly so when it ends. Wouldn't it make more sense to build divorce right into the structure of marriage? It would streamline the entire process.

Long gone are the days when the eternal vows are taken seriously. "'Til death do us part"? Not hardly. It is time that the institution of marriage begins to reflect the reality of human behavior. The reality? The reality is we need a renewable marriage license. Marriages ought to expire by design because they are going to end anyway, usually in a massive tangle of legal and economic issues that primarily seems designed to provide for the care and feeding of lawyers.

The time has come to be able to renew the marriage license. Let's get past the notion marriage is forever and face the facts. It doesn't last until death do most couples part. It usually lasts until the partners in marriage can't handle living together anymore and want out.

Marriage licenses ought to expire after, say, two years. If the couple wishes to continue their marriage, they go to the courthouse, pay a fee to renew the marriage license, it gets stamped with an official seal, and the marriage is renewed for another two years.

The fiercest opposition to the idea of a renewable marriage license would come from Christian conservatives who harbor unrealistic expectations of the durability of marriage, and the lawyers, many of whom make a lot of money in the divorce business. I am very much in favor of removing predatory lawyers from the entire process.

It occurs to me that a marriage which has a firm expiration date would provide greater motivation for the couple to work at their marriage. I believe they would be less inclined to take each other for granted if they knew that on a certain specific the marriage will end if the license is not renewed.

Further, it provides a major opportunity for a celebration of their marriage. A renewable marriage license, a renewable marriage, a refreshed appreciation of each other and a commitment to love...for another two years. In two-year increments, even marriage can be tolerable and enjoyable. It's that "forever" stuff that seems so impossible. Taking life in smaller increments can be a good thing. And this proposal gives yet another revenue stream to local government.