Week 2/11/13

This week in family relations class, we talked about some of the important things to know in dating. This is the process that is so often looked past in today's world that needs to be addressed. People today just don't date. I learned a couple of things that I didn't necessarily agree with before. For instance, the question was brought up about the first date. If I don't see things going anywhere with a young man should I decline the date? I was surprised to find that most people disagreed with me that it is alright to say no. Instead, it is fine to realize that I need to practice getting to know a variety of people as well as learn how to interact with different people. There shouldn't be so much weight put into the first date. First dates are meant to be fun and relaxed - just a good time. If you cannot necessarily "see yourself marrying that person" don't say no - you never know if you're misjudging them and it's an opportunity to get out and date a variety of people. I'm trying to adopt this kind of attitude, which is not far from my own, but at the same time if I said yes to every guy who asked me on a date I might be having more long Friday (date night) nights than I would like, so good judgement is needed in that process as well. Also, once a couple begins courting, that doesn't mean that dating should stop. Courting means that people are just seeing one another exclusively and if that is the case, they still need to date and continue to get to know one another. Also, we do not get to know people just in three months, in fact, that is when we barely start to see the real people who have begun to let their "pretty face" come off. It is so crucial to date someone and get to know them a bit more thoroughly before we decide to become engaged to them.