To be married successfully, you have to be bi-lingual. There has been a lot on the radio lately about Love Languages by Gary Chapman.
A couple years ago I had my husband and I take the quiz, but I have since forgotten what each of our languages are. Just by the things that I react to, or over react to, as the case may be, have hinted that Words of Affirmation may be one of mine. Realizing that my husband has produced a card for every holiday on the calendar for the last ten years, (yes, including Halloween and sometimes even Thanksgiving) tell me that his love language might be gifts. His favorite store is the Dollar Store near his office, so I am the frequent recipient of lightbulbs, toothpaste, and candy. He is nothing if not practical. As a matter of fact, his first gift to me was a pack of tube socks. He had noticed that my socks were holey and mismatched. I am very lucky in that he notices a need, and fills it. A few weeks ago he told me to go buy an iPod because my the earbuds for my phone mp3 player kept falling out of my ears.
But, this is not about how great my husband he is, although he is extremely generous. It is about how badly I misread him sometimes. I have spent a great deal of time re-doing my house, and was waiting for the appropriate pat on the head when he came home from work not too long ago. I had sanded down and repainted all the cupboards in the kitchen, in addition to installing some beadboard in the back of a cabinet so it looks like a country cupboard.
I was so excited for him to get home the day I finally completed all the projects. I heard the garage door open and casually positioned myself in the kitchen, leaning against the counter top. He came in, put his lunch box down, and asked where the mail was. Then he went in the bedroom to turn the news on. The wind slowly left my sails and tears stung my eyes as I didn't get the reaction I had hoped for. Later on he mentioned that the kitchen looked "nice." I worked really hard reciting Philippians 4:8, focusing on everything good about him in that moment.
The next day he came home from work with a present for me...a circular saw, so next time I can cut my own beadboard. A different language, perhaps, but it still says "I love you."
