Date your mate or lose your mate! Date your mate to keep your mate! Have you heard these modern dictums or axioms? They speak to a modern world love truth you may do well to think about.
Lots of couples come to me complaining that their relationship is not what it used to be. They worry that they are falling out of love, feel like something is missing that used to be there and wonder what to do about it. Examining this usually reveals that they are not behaving in ways that keep love alive and growing. One of the missing ingredients is they have stopped ‘dating’ one another. They may go out to eat, or go to the movies and things like that but they don’t behave like they are on a date when doing those things.
There are no special preparations like wearing sexy clothes or using a little perfume or aftershave. When out together there is no flirting, holding hands, sexy innuendos, playful nudges, intimate strokes or romantic squeezes. Nor is there looking longingly into each other’s eyes, romantic talk, hints of mystery or surprise, or anything else that might identify what they are doing as a date. Worse there may be problem talk. It is not a date if there is talk about problems. It is a meeting! Dates that grow love usually are best accomplished when two people give each other special, personal, positive focus. Dates are for intimate compliments, personal appreciations, expressions of enjoyment and sometimes desire and passion.
A real date includes shared laughter, a sense of personal closeness and all things fun and good – not problems, and not a lot of dealing with everyday practicalities and functionality. Usually after a couple starts taking each other out on new real dates again improvements start to return to their relationship. This is not the only thing needed but it can be a big jump start toward increasing the special form of love that couples can create. So, I like to suggest that couples abide by the modern dictums, “Date Your Mate or Risk Losing Your Mate.” And “Date Your Mate To Keep Your Mate”.
It is especially helpful to go on lots of different kinds of dates. Here are some to think about. Mini dates (ice cream store, walk in the park), regular dates (a movie, out to eat), informal dates (coffee shop, browsing a bookstore together), special event dates (birthday, anniversary), dress up dates (a play, the symphony), romantic dates (candle light dinner, carriage ride), adventure dates (balloon ride, mountain hiking), mystery dates (involving unknown destinations and activities), play dates (amusement park, howling at the full moon together Рmaybe star gazing after), elegant dates (fine art museum, fine dining), sexy dates (tango dancing, a risqu̩ club) at home or at a special hotel sex dates (erotic massage, striptease) and combinations like a romantic adventure date involving riding galloping horses together through the surf on a moonlit night.
One trick to remember is to call it a ‘date’ in order to get in the right mind-set and help you remember to act like you’re on a date. Avoid doing just the kind of parallel activity that friends can do but instead do the more intimate, special, connecting interactions which are, by the way, good for couples of all ages. That way you are more likely to keep the love in your love relationship growing healthfully.
As always – Grow in love.
Dr. J. Richard Cookerly
♥ Love success questions
Today will you give thought to the kind of date or special time together a loved one might especially enjoy, and with those thoughts design a date that you ask that loved one to go on? If you have trouble designing a date how about asking that special loved one today, “What sort of date or time together would you especially like?” Today would you consider going over the above list of different kinds of dates with them? If not today, then when exactly?
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