How does your boyfriend/girlfriend treat you in front of other people? Do you feel built up when you are in public together? Does he highlight your good points to his friends? Does he brag on you? Does she mention the positive things about you when you are out with other couples? Do her girlfriends hope for a man as wonderful as you after they spend time with you and your girlfriend? It is exceedingly important that a man and woman in a relationship heading toward marriage speak to each other with respect in private; however, this is just as essential in public as well. Many people choose … [Read more...]
The Fantasy of Marriage
For years, I wanted a Golden Retriever puppy. At work, I would sit and daydream about how wonderful it would be to have that sweet bundle of puppy fur. We would get up, eat, cuddle, sleep some more, cuddle some more, and then go for a walk. Day after day, month after month, I dreamed of this puppy. When we finally called our breeder for an initial interview, I became teary-eyed. My dream was finally coming true! As I type this, my precious dream is whining her head off! She's beautiful, but so much work. Some nights as she's whining, I lie in bed and ask myself, "What was I thinking?" … [Read more...]
Our Furry, Four-Legged Friends (Talking about Pets)
Pets can be a wonderful asset to your life and... can also be an aggravation to your life if you are not in a position to take care of them. This issue can be a point of contention. Some people grow up with pets and cannot imagine a home without them. Others are not raised with pets and can't imagine a home with them. It could be that you never had a dog and you always wanted one, while your spouse-to-be had dogs growing up and hated the shedding and constant work. Either way, having pets is an issue which needs to be completely be agreed upon in order to avoid blame, anger, and/or resentment … [Read more...]
Moods and Anger
One of my favorite undergraduate professors, Dr. Phillip Captain, said, "Ladies, take your moods to God... and your anger to your husband." Like most people in the class, I wrinkled my brow and looked confused. What does that mean? Eventually, I came to understand that he meant to go to the Lord and pray when you are in a bad mood instead of taking it out on your husband. However, when you are angry with your husband, you should go to him, in love and gentleness, and confront the situation respectfully. This is also true if a husband is angry with his wife. The phrase was directed at women … [Read more...]
Taking Care of Yourself with Your Health in Mind
We are image-sick in this country. Everywhere you go, you see airbrushed and edited images of regular people. It has become much worse over the last fifty years with our digital technology. We can't go to the grocery store without being reminded at least ten times that, physically, we are less than perfect. Our country's kids are idolizing people with "perfect" bodies and at times going to drastic measures to "be" like them. Unfortunately American obsession with appearance has taken a bite out of our corporate health. Sure, there are many ways to look good, but most of them are not healthy. … [Read more...]