It's no secret that I have very little dating experience. We're talking serious man-drought. 10 years of it. That's one fourth of the time the Israelites wandered the desert. It's the age of my students. It's an entire decade, people.
Well, this lack of experience has been both good and challenging as I've navigated my relationship now. Perhaps the most difficult hurdle to overcome has been understanding how we are different as men and women and trying to communicate. If you want to know what it's like, just try watching the Spanish channel with your hands over your ears and everybody speaking backwards. It's tough. It's frustrating. And neither side is right or wrong. He's logical. I'm emotional. He says exactly what he means no matter how blunt it may be. I sugar-coat and dance around the issue. He tunes out or makes jokes. I sigh and cry and roll my eyes.
These differences can cause stress and challenges in communicating. But they are the same differences that make us human and unique. God created each gender to have strengths that would complement the other. And when things are working together harmoniously, it's really rather beautiful. It may take a lot of work, some long nights, and occasionally an interpreter, but the reward is great. As I'm learning to understand his idiosyncrasies and he's gradually beginning to grasp my minor insanity, we are growing closer to one another and closer to the vision that God has for our relationship.
Fortunately in the meantime I am becoming quite proficient at man-speak. So in honor of all guys out there, let me just say, "Dude". And thanks for growing with us.
No comments:
Post a Comment