Former US President Barack Obama is in the far north to play golf on the first of his three-day trip to New Zealand.
This October, Barack Obama will celebrate the 26 years of marriage to Michelle. The impressive milestone indicates that the former President of the United States knows a thing or two about enduring romantic relationships.
He's also happy to share his secret. Dan Pfeiffer, who formerly served as Senior Advisor toObama, 56, said the President was quite proud that so many people met their partners while working for him, and had a bit of advice he liked to share with couples who were getting serious.
Pfeiffer published the nugget of wisdom in his New York Times bestseller, "Yes We (Still) Can: Politics in the Age of Obama, Twitter, and Trump."
Run For Something's Amanda Litman was reading the book recently when she came to the sweet passage, which she shared on Twitter.
"Barack Obama's relationship advice to @danpfeiffer is better than 99% of the advice columns on the Internet," she wrote.
In the passage, Pfeiffer — who is currently co-host of the Pod Save America podcast and a contributor to CNN — thought back to the time he was still dating his now-wife, Howli, whom he met while working for the President.
Dan Pfeiffer, who formerly served as Senior Advisor to Obama, revealed his wisdom in his latest book. Photo / Getty Images
Pfeiffer said their relationship was just one of many that came out of Obama's staff. In 2016 alone, he went to four weddings for people who met while working for Obama, including his own
"Obama was always very proud of the hundreds of relationships that had sprung from his campaigns and his administration," he wrote.
And when Obama found out that Pfeiffer was moving in with Howli, he congratulated him — and got serious.
"Here's the advice I give everyone about marriage," Obama said, before launching into three important questions a person should ask him or herself.
First, he asks: "Is she someone you find interesting? You will spend more time with this person than anyone else for the rest of your life, and there is nothing more important than always wanting to hear what she has to say about things."
Second, he asked: "Does she make you laugh?"
And third, he said: "I don't know if you want kids, but if you do, do you think she will be a good mum?
"Life is long," Obama told him. "These are things that really matter over the long term."
When Pheiffer told Obama that Howli meets all those requirements, Obama said, "Sounds like she's the one. Lucky you."
Obama himself has been pretty lucky in the relationship department, as he and Michelle, 54, still seem to be very much in love, 29 years after they first laid eyes on each other.
The pair met in the summer of 1989, when Michelle (née Robinson) was assigned as Barack's mentor at the Chicago law firm Sidley Austin LLP. She was 25 and already working there, while he was 28 and had just graduated from Harvard, her alma mater.
"Barack, about a month in, asked me out, and I thought no way. This is completely tacky," Michelle told ABC News.
Eventually, his persistence paid off and she said yes. Their first date took them to a museum, a movie, and an ice cream shop.
Two years later, they were enjoying a meal out when Barack popped the question.
"We were at a restaurant having dinner to celebrate the fact that he had finished the bar," Michelle said. "And that was supposedly the reason. And then the waiter came over with the dessert and a tray. And there was the ring. And I was completely shocked."
On October 3, 1992, they said "I do."
"Barack didn't pledge riches, only a life that would be interesting. On that promise he delivered," Michelle said.
"Twenty five years later, we're still having fun, while also doing the hard work to build our partnership and support each other as individuals," she wrote on Instagram this year. "I can't imagine going on this wild ride with anybody else."
