This past June marked ten years of marriage to “the good husband,” as I call him. And, wow, did he ever live up to that title on this anniversary. He completely surprised me with a trip to Europe, including a visit to my relatives in Italy. He planned the entire thing without breathing a word of it to me. (And in case you’re wondering, I made him a slide show as my gift. He kind of outdid me in the gift-giving category this year!) In his honor, I’m bringing back a post a wrote two years ago. Here’s to all the “good husbands” wherever they are and wherever they come from!

I would like to state right off the bat that I love my country and I’m all for buying American. I must also be honest, however, and admit that there are times when you have to tap the international market to get the best quality. You shop around, you do a side-by-side comparison and sometimes, from cars to computers to cardigan sweaters, you find the import stands head and shoulders above the U.S. product.

I speak from personal experience in the domestic vs. import debate regarding one item in particular, the husband. I have had one of each and I can tell you there is simply no contest. The import outperforms the domestic on every level imaginable, which is even more impressive when you consider that I got the domestic husband straight out of the box—although, in retrospect, I believe he was actually a damaged return passed off for new—while I picked up the imported husband second-hand. Obviously well-crafted of quality materials, husband number two’s sleek exterior and finely tuned motor showed not a sign of wear–and eight years later, they still don’t.

The import ticks all the expected boxes: loving, intelligent, funny and willing to carry heavy things and kill large insects. But, more importantly, many features that the domestic model lacked—with disastrous consequences—came standard on the import. Fidelity, integrity and honor were all part of his package, no upcharge, no fine print, no exceptions.

In matters of care and handling, again, in my experience, the import takes top honors. He is the very antithesis of high maintenance. A regular supply of love and tenderness with an occasional Snickers bar thrown in is all it takes to keep him running in top condition. Capably and dependably he fixes everything from broken doors to broken dreams without being prompted. The essence of stability, he displays none of the prickly moodiness and unpredictability that plagued the domestic model from the get-go.

And so in this instance of domestic vs. import, the hands-down winner is the import. I realize, of course, that there are plenty of good domestic model husbands to be found out there, but, unfortunately, that was not my experience. If I have to come up with one complaint about my imported husband, it’s that it took so long to find him. But, he surely was worth the wait!

Bouncing back from a broken romance is one of life’s most difficult challenges. If you’re in that situation right now, your bouncy “boing” probably feels a lot more like fallen-flat “splat.” But, you really can bounce back. In fact, you can bounce higher than you ever imagined and gain a whole new perspective in the process. Let me know how you bounced back from a broken heart. Or if you’re having trouble bouncing back, what is the biggest obstacle preventing you from doing so?