Valentine’s day is derived from the feast for the patron saint– Valentine. Historians tell the story of one saint who married couples in secret to prevent men from going to war.
In the 1400’s, the day became associated with romance.
People started writing letters and poems declaring their love and calling them “Valentines.” In fact, 180 million cards are exchanged each year and florists prepare nearly two million roses.
Moving on to the 5 love languages…
If you’re in a relationship and everything is going mostly well but you can’t see eye to eye on certain things… it may be that you are speaking different ‘love languages’.
“Love languages are very important because it’s how we interpret that we feel loved, valued, and appreciated by our mate,” said Winter.
If you are interested in finding out your love language, you can always take this quiz to find out…plus it’s something fun to do with your partner. Then, come back to this story and see if the examples listed match your way of loving or the way you love to be loved.
When we learn about each love language and which ones apply to our significant other, we can better understand ourselves and our partners and how each shows and wants to receive love.
1) Words of affirmation.
“If you want your partner to keep doing the good things they’re doing, you have to keep encouraging them by noticing it and acknowledging their contribution,” said Susan Winter, the Relationship Expert.
Some words of affirmation could be
2) Acts of service.
“Oftentimes the person who doesn’t articulate, how much they care for you, we’ll show you by acts of service,” said Winter.
In other words, this means they show or want love through actions instead of verbal words or communication.
- “I believe in you”
- “I’m so proud of you”
- “Thank you for taking out the garbage”
It’s important for you to acknowledge the good that your partner is doing.
Examples of acts of service:
- cooking a meal
- picking up your dry cleaning
- walking your dog
- any physical acts of service
This shows them that “I’m going out of my way to assist you because I care for you.”
3) Receiving gifts or ‘gift-giving.’
“We oftentimes dismiss this category as being superficial or materialistic and it can easily be construed as such,” said Winter.
However it’s a little deeper than just the object given, some people love seeing tangible items to remind them of their loved ones.
“It’s because you’ve listened and you know, what’s important to them. So it signifies more than just I’m giving you a gift,” said Winter.
Examples:
- a certain edition of a book or a comic book
- tickets to a sporting event or concert
- a tee shirt with their favorite band or movie on it
- their favorite candy
