The proposal the the beginning of forming family roles
Shows leadership. In my faith it shows that the man is honoring his priesthood leadership responsibilities
What's the significance of the proposal in your opinion?
An interesting fact that I had never heard before was that people who are on their way to divorce have 10 areas of significant incompatibility. In contrast the people who reported having a great and happy marriage have 10 areas of significant incompatibility as well. What is the difference? I have my own thoughts and you can have yours, but it is an interesting comparison, that's for sure.
Each type of love is necessary for a successful marriage. Ideally each type of love will be developed before a couple ties the knot, but don't fear if you and your significant other haven't quite mastered all four of them - there's still hope. You can work on getting there together! In too many circumstances couples are over-reliant on eros, or romantic love. Don't get me wrong the romantic side of things is very important, it is in some cases that's what gets the whole relationship the little kick on the pants it needs to get things going.
Women are more reliant on feelings whereas men aren't as much. Is this a good thing or a bad thing or does it even matter? I haven't fully decided. My guess is that it is a good and necessary thing, but can sometimes be difficult in a marriage. Women love to talk about feelings and feel unloved or unappreciated when their spouse doesn't seem interested in talking with them. In reality men don't show love through words as much as women do. Typically men like to show their love through actions. The important thing is that each couple can figure out how the other says "I love you" whether it be with or without words.
Brother Williams is awesome. In class he asked us if we could think of a song that portrays love. (Not the love in the media, but real honest to goodness love.) His example was Aquabats "Red Sweater" which coincidentally is one of my favorite songs! My favorite lyric from this song is:
You're my girl
I'm your man
I don't care if we live in a garbage can
I'm your man
You're my gal
I'm so glad that we are pals
You can go ahead and interpret this song anyway you'd like but it definitely shows each side of love in such a fun adorable way. The song that I first thought of however was Fictionist's "Suffering Angel." This is just such a sweet and tender song talking about the love one member of the band has for his wife. My favorite lyric from this song is:
I have nothing to give you but my love
As for this life I don't own it
Was a gift from above
If I've ever seen a reflection of God
It was when you
Saved me from all the things I was
This is such a beautiful lyric, I just love it! So tell me, what song do you think portrays real honest to goodness love?
During this week, I've really started to realize how much I love the church's view of the family. I mean, I've always known, but it's more obvious to me now. As I was reading about the family I was stuck on the definition that was given.
"Family, is a group united by marriage or cohabitation, blood, and/or adoption in order to satisfy intimacy needs and rearing children always take place in a social context, however. Such factors as social class, race, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, and type of community (urban or rural) all have some bearing upon marriage and family life." -Robert & Jeanette Lauer
While this definition is valid and has some good points, I am even more grateful for the chance I have to understand the family in an eternal perspective.
"The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. " -The Family A Proclamation to the World
Families are meant to be together forever. I am thankful for my chance to have a forever family. Family is more than just "a group united by marriage or cohabitation". It is a chance to be with the ones we love most for eternity.
