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I got a text from an old guy friend last night, and he said he was lonely because he doesn’t have a girlfriend. That kind of took me off guard, as all this time, I have been under the impression that he was okay being single. Little did I know that beneath that exterior of Jay Leno-ish humor was a man craving for some womanly affection.
So I guess it’s safe to say that we do need each other. No matter how fulfilled we are when it comes to our careers, for instance, we simply can’t live without a better half. We are on the constant search for that other person to complement who we are.
But as anyone who has ever subscribed to that entire “men are from mars, women are from venus” school of thought, we all know that men and women are as different as night and day. Despite that stark reality, we try to worm our way through this entanglement of differences in the hopes of living harmoniously with each other.
One of these differences is manifested in how we deal with problems. Women love to confide in their partners about whatever’s bothering them, while men on the other hand keep things to themselves. We air things out, while men would rather hole up in their man cave and toss a problem around their head until they come up with a solution.
It’s only too tempting to pick a fight with your man if he appears distant and aloof, but that doesn’t ease things up in any way. The key to working with our differences is in first accepting the fact that we are different. Once we realize that, our expectations of each other become more realistic. We don’t ask more than what the other can give. What could otherwise escalate into World War 3 then becomes a moment of understanding- which your man will appreciate you more for.
So the next time your man seems to take forever to reply to your text messages, give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe the dog ate his cellphone…