One of the best ways to build and strengthen a relationship is to meet another where they are. This is perhaps best accomplished by figuring out how another experiences love and being willing to show love in a way that makes sense to them. Dr. Gary Chapman, author of The Five Love Languages, believes that understanding how an individual experiences love is the key to lasting relationships, both romantic relationships as well as others.
According to Dr. Chapman, The 5 most common love languages are:
Words of Affirmations
Gifts
Acts of Service
Quality Time
Physical Touch (to learn more, visit: https://www.oprahmag.com/life/relationships-love/a28084004/five-love-languages-summary/)
In my last blog post, I talked about the golden rule and how to become someone that doesn't live with regrets, someone worthy of being a role model to those around them. Understanding how to love people, is nothing more than taking it a step further. Not only should you want o be someone you are proud of but you should also deepen those relationships and make them meaningful.
This is again one of those things that sounds like it should be so easy, but it really isn't, at least for me. I know what my love language is (Acts of Service), and I know how and when I feel the most loved. It is the giving in other languages that is a real struggle and frustration for me. Even with my husband, I get frustrated because we experience love differently.
It is not enough to want to love others and treat them the way they WE want to be treated. The logical next step is to deepen the bond and commitment to those in our world by attempting to understand what they need from us to feel loved and valued. And if we cannot figure it out, we can always ask.
And this is how we love the world and spread happiness and joy!
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