2/16/96
Madonna, assume my attempt to lure you is successful, we have a kid, and 2 years down the road we decide we're not right for each other. What would we do? Well, since we're both very resourceful people, we'd find other pursuits and go on with our lives. But what about the child? How would we divide the child? Even though we, like every other couple in love with each other, would at first believe that the relationship will be perfect forever, we could be wrong. The possibility that it could go south is one we have to deal with, and in my opinion we should do it in advance so as to minimize wounds inflicted on our offspring. Think of it as a Plan B, where Plan A is what we want: a wonderful life until we grow old.
I would also recommend other couples thinking about getting married who are reading this to consider this option. When you get married, have on the marriage license an escape route, in which you both agree to and sign a paper saying how things will be divided if it doesn't work out. Imagine all the court costs it would save! Discuss amongst yourselves. I'll give you a topic. That such a marriage license would be neither a vow of 'till death do us part' nor a 'true marriage'. Discuss.
One reason I think such an agreement would be particularly important for a marrage between two famous people, such as Mo and Me, is that it would save the child the pain of having to deal with television cameras being constantly focused on the trial. Think of what OJ's kids must have been going through while he was on trial. The difference here, not to belittle the pain of OJ's children, is that the child would not know which side to root for. It would break my heart to have my child go through that experience.
So, Madonna, before we even conceive our child, I want us to have a written agreement signed by both of us, which states exactly what we will do with the child, who will get to have it on which days, and how we will transport it between the two of us. It is just common sense. We might even be able to file it with the state so they could clarify any later disputes. I don't know if they would allow that or not. I'll tell you what though, if they did, it would save them a lot of taxpayer money often wasted on petty disputes, and it would make everybody's life a little easier.