Hey everyone,
We all know that there are times in life when we feel as if we need someone to have our back. I'd like to hear the ladies' thoughts about what it means to feel protected in a relationship, and how a sense of protection is expressed within a relationship. (Guys, don't worry, I'm going to write a second thread just for you, and you are most welcome to share your thoughts in this thread as well.)
Once upon a time when I was married and in college, there was a local news story about a girl who had been kidnapped by gunpoint in the parking lot of a local store at 2 PM while walking out to her car. This store also happened to be the one I went to every week for our groceries at the time.
My then-husband saw this article and told me that from now on, he didn't want me going to the store alone, and that he wanted me to wait until I could go with him. I grumbled at first because, well, you know, I was trying to be the tough, independent woman, but secretly, the fact that my safety was so important to him made me feel incredibly loved.
This world can sometimes be a scary place. In the many years that I've now been single, there have been so many times when I've wished I had someone to walk with me across dark parking lots, or I've been situations in which my safety was jeopardized (due to situations beyond my control.) I long to feel as if someone "has my back."
But then I stop and realize that even if I DID have a significant other, it's not like he could be with me 24/7 anyway, or that he could save me from every situation. I strive towards always becoming stronger, more self-sufficient, and able to do things on my own, but there is a part of me that wishes I didn't always have to feel as if I have try to be so tough all the time.
I would like to know:
* Ladies, what makes you feel protected? (Physically, emotionally, and spiritually?)
* How important is it to you that you feel protected within a relationship? And what are the things others do around you for for you that make you feel protected?
* Gentlemen: how would you show your girlfriend/wife that you "had her back" and are there to look out for her?
These are just a few of the points I was thinking about regarding protection--feel free to add any other thoughts of your own.
Please feel free to add any thoughts of your own.
We all know that there are times in life when we feel as if we need someone to have our back. I'd like to hear the ladies' thoughts about what it means to feel protected in a relationship, and how a sense of protection is expressed within a relationship. (Guys, don't worry, I'm going to write a second thread just for you, and you are most welcome to share your thoughts in this thread as well.)
Once upon a time when I was married and in college, there was a local news story about a girl who had been kidnapped by gunpoint in the parking lot of a local store at 2 PM while walking out to her car. This store also happened to be the one I went to every week for our groceries at the time.
My then-husband saw this article and told me that from now on, he didn't want me going to the store alone, and that he wanted me to wait until I could go with him. I grumbled at first because, well, you know, I was trying to be the tough, independent woman, but secretly, the fact that my safety was so important to him made me feel incredibly loved.
This world can sometimes be a scary place. In the many years that I've now been single, there have been so many times when I've wished I had someone to walk with me across dark parking lots, or I've been situations in which my safety was jeopardized (due to situations beyond my control.) I long to feel as if someone "has my back."
But then I stop and realize that even if I DID have a significant other, it's not like he could be with me 24/7 anyway, or that he could save me from every situation. I strive towards always becoming stronger, more self-sufficient, and able to do things on my own, but there is a part of me that wishes I didn't always have to feel as if I have try to be so tough all the time.
I would like to know:
* Ladies, what makes you feel protected? (Physically, emotionally, and spiritually?)
* How important is it to you that you feel protected within a relationship? And what are the things others do around you for for you that make you feel protected?
* Gentlemen: how would you show your girlfriend/wife that you "had her back" and are there to look out for her?
These are just a few of the points I was thinking about regarding protection--feel free to add any other thoughts of your own.
Please feel free to add any thoughts of your own.