marriage

“I am satisfied that happiness in marriage is not so much a matter of romance as it is an anxious concern for the comfort and well-being of one’s companion. Any man who will make his wife’s comfort his first concern will stay in love with her throughout their lives and through the eternity yet to come”-Gordon B. Hinckley


After Dennis and I got home last night from running errands, 
he asked me if I planned on watching any TV before going to bed. 
I said something like, "Uh yeah, I think I will."  
I thought I might like to watch an episode of my new favorite program, The Locator. 

Then I asked him, "Why did you want to know?"
He said he was just trying to decide if he should disconnect the TV then, or in the morning, 
since Matt would be working in that area of flooring next.

So the evening went on and as is often the case, 
I turned the TV on for about 5 minutes when I remembered I had something else I wanted to do. 
So off the TV went.

Later as we were getting ready to go to bed, 
I noticed Dennis set his alarm to go off an hour earlier than usual.
"Why do you want to get up so early?" I asked.
He said he needed to get things ready for Matt.
Huh?

Then he explained he needed to disconnect the TV and clean behind the wall unit,  etc etc.
and move all the wires, etc that go along with the TV, radio, stereo, etc.

Then it dawned on me that this was an hour's worth of work he could have done the night before
which would have allowed him to get an hour extra sleep this morning.
Had I known, I would have answered that I didn't need to watch TV last night!

But as usual, he was looking after my wants above his own. 
I should have known.

This reminds me of something I read in a Real Simple magazine just last night, about marriage.
A woman was writing her thoughts on what to her is the most important trait in a spouse.
She wrote: 
All because of kindness.

And I think President Hinckley said it best.

9 comments:

Susan Anderson said...

We are lucky women!

=)

Eileen said...

I agree one hundred percent! It's the little daily self-sacrificing acts, sometimes acts that even go unnoticed at times, these wonderful acts of kindness cement the relationship.
I wonder if that is something that can be learned?
I get the feeling with my husband that it's just who he is. He is self-sacrificing, he does put myself and the family first, and he is constantly putting our needs before his own, and it just seems to all come natural to him. It doesn't seem like it's a conscious effort on his part, it just seems to be who he is.

Beautiful post, Jill. And a nice reminder to me not to take those wonderful acts of kindness for granted!
Love and Prayers,
Eileen

Kim said...

Loved this. Thank you for sharing a piece of your lives with us.
Kim :)

Natalie said...

Yes, I underestimated this trait when looking for a husband, but somehow ended up with one of the nicest men ever born on this earth. I read a post recently on oldfashionedmotherhood about the importance of wives treating their husbands well. I loved it. Thanks for this great reminder=)

Darlene said...

Youe Dennis is so like my Dick. He is always putting my needs before his own too. I hate that he has to do so much for me now. He actually waits on me hand and foot now and I'm hoping against hope that this dizziness will not be permanent as I'm not sure how I can handle it. I have always been such a busy active person.

We really are fortunate to have such great guys in our lives!

Rebecca said...

awwww, sweet husband! You are a lucky gal!

Anonymous said...

Love this! Thanks, Jill.
darlene

Unknown said...

thank you for the look into what a great marriage is. While I did not have that kind of marriage, I know they exist from watching others. It is what I pray for my own daughter. It is a trait she is looking for.

Kris said...

Oh how I loved reading this! It actually got me choked up because I could picture dad doing this. Thanks so much for sharing and I love that quote from President Hinckley.

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