It was the 8th of March 2021 when data analyst Hoby Dacalos and his fiancée Charmine finally tied the knot in Sydney, Australia.
It was an intimate but spectacular wedding attended by their close family and friends.
Five months after exchanging I do’s, the couple who are supposed to be savouring their first few months as a newly married couple are in the midst of a COVID-19 outbreak in New South Wales.
While it is overwhelming, Mr Dacalos says they are taking their marriage one day at a time.
"The biggest thing that I realised is every day you really have to choose to love each other and if you take that step everything else falls into place such as finances and plans."
Adjustments as newlywed
In an interview with SBS Filipino’s love down under, Mr Dacalos shares his biggest adjustment as a husband is making time for his wife.
"My biggest adjustment is time. I used to be involved in so many activities like organising basketball games or being actively involved in church, but when I got married, I chose to give most of my time to my wife."
For Mr Dacalos, the pandemic was an opportunity to spend quality time with Charmine and at the same time, get to know her.
While personal space is important for him, Mr Dacalos says he learnt to appreciate his wife when she changes things at home.
"Im not territorial, but I always have a placement for my things. But when I met her, she organised things at home. I sort of felt she invaded my space but then I learnt to appreciate it because I see the value [of the changes]."
With housework, Mr Dacalos shares they work as a team but most of the time, his wife initiates as she is more organised and neat.
"With keeping the house clean, we help each other."
In terms of finances, although there are minor adjustments, the couple shares and manages a joint account together.
"After we got married, we shared a joint account together and everything we spend on like dates, groceries, we took it there and we manage it together."
Finding the balance
Putting each other's needs before one's self can be difficult to master, but for Mr Dacalos, this is a big part in having a healthy marriage especially during a pandemic.
