New Year Thoughts for Wives

Here's a little interesting article to ponder:

HOW TO BE A GOOD WIFE
Home Economics High School Text Book, 1954

Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal, on time. This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they come home and the prospect of a good meal are part of the warm welcome needed.

Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so that you’ll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your makeup, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people. Be a little gay and a little more interesting. His boring day may need a lift.

Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the home just before your husband arrives, gather up schoolbooks, toys, paper, etc. Then run a dust cloth over the tables. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift, too.

Prepare the children. Take a few minutes to wash the children’s hands and faces (if they are small), comb their hair, and if necessary change their clothes. They are little treasures and he would like to see them playing the part.

Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer, dishwasher, or vacuum. Try to encourage the children to be quiet. Be happy to see him. Greet him with a warm smile and be glad he is home.

Some don’ts: Don’t greet him with problems or complaints. Don’t complain if he is late for dinner. Count this as minor compared with what he might have gone through that day. Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or suggest he lie down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him. Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soft, soothing and pleasant voice. Allow him to relax and unwind.

Listen to him. You may have a dozen things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first.

Make the evening his. Never complain if he does not take you out to dinner or to other places of entertainment. Instead, try to understand his world of strain and pressure, his need to be home and relax.

The Goal: Try to make your home a place of peace and order where your husband can renew himself in body and spirit.

This article was read the other day at a wedding shower I attended, and of course, it filled the room with laughter. When all was said and done, I spent some time thinking about it and found that maybe this is what we are lacking! Go back and reread this article, thinking of how much kindness this wife was showing to her husband, and then compare it to your normal activities when your husband comes home. Which do you think he would prefer?

Now, I'm not really suggesting that this should be your exact goal for 2010, but really, couldn't we all find room to improve to show more love and kindness to our men? It really is sort of sad to think of the new attitude that is the normal; kindness is abnormal and a man isn't deserving of it, we should be served, not serving, and that we shouldn't ever have to go out of our way for our man. I guess I have to be honest and say I disagree with all of it!

Instead, I think that it would do me good to remember to treat my husband with a little more kindness, to make him feel special when he comes in the door, to wait till after he has unwound to hear the days problems, to be thoughtful and plan a dinner that would be ready to eat, to not expect him to come home and begin cleaning when he gets done with dinner, to teach my children to treat him with love and respect and do a little extra something special for him.

Outdated, probably, but upon a little research, I find that the divorce rate was less than half in 1954 than it was in 2009. I'd prefer to see the earlier statistics. Plus, life has taught me a few hard lessons, but from them I have learned that ALL human beings like to be treated kindly, shown a little extra attention, be served, listened to, and loved. Life has also taught me that MOST human beings, upon treated that way, reciprocate and suddenly I have found upon examination that my husband treats me just about as well as that wife in the article above treated her husband, that children who are treated with respect tend to treat others with respect, and friends who are loved, love in return.

So, instead of just laughing at the article, lets give it a try in our own way, and then we can smile as the world complains of such miserable people in this world when we realize that we have found a wonderful group of people to share our lives with.

Give it a try... I think it is contagious!