(the wife's viewpoint:)
So lately manners have been a topic of discussion in our humble abode. I was brought up to be very polite and pretty much always put others feelings before mine (not that my parents said “everyone else’s feelings are more important than yours!” or anything, it’s just how I ended up) and to always be courteous and make everyone feel comfortable. I find these to be good traits and always kind of prided myself on being Mrs. Manners (elbows on the table? Not me! Chewing with my mouth open? Never! Making sure everyone is comfortable and happy? Always.). I have never in my life thought any of these qualities to be a detriment to my personality until last night as we were driving home from my parents house and my handsome husband say: “You know what always drives me crazy about going to your parents house?”
(Oh great, here we go again) “……What…….?”
“Everyone is always SO polite!”
Huh?
(the husband's viewpoint:)
Growing up in a home, where there was absolutely nothing holding me or my 2 sisters back from letting loose at the dinner table, highlights one of the cornerstone traits of my personality. Top 3 things you would never see at my childhood home:
1) Prayer & reverence
2) Sharing or consideration
3) Good manners
3 things you most likely see:
1) Inapropriate jokes made constantly (even in front of grandma!)
2) Shoveling food into our mouths similar to the simpsons.
3) Laughing so hard that millk squirts out your nose all over the main dish.
So you can see that in comparison, I become bored with politeness. I have nothing against it of course. In fact I encourage it now that I'm a father. However I hope to bring to my own family the kind of fun and laughter of which I was raised straight to the dinner table. The key to being mutally captivated is finding a balance between the conservative family dinner and the opposite. Luckily I have a great wife who can bring the manners “to the table” while I bring the raucousness. Cheers to compromise.
