Diva Zone ™ Magazine Power Couples February 2018 - Teaser Issue | 页面 3

3 “H H ow sweet it is, to be loved by you,” is the title cut of the fif th album of the sultr y soul singer Mar vin Gaye. In 1965 Mar vin “topped The Char ts” with his classic single that still delivers the timeless message of Love. To be loved Is the most awesome feeling in the world! To have someone in your life who desires you and you alone, is truly a gif t. Marriage has long been a traditional and sacred institution. However, we may not see many of today ’s millennials embarking on this joyous journey of lifelong companionship. In this technolog y and information age, there is always a chance to be distracted, mislead, and even misunderstood. Who we are, and how we appear is of ten ver y dif ferent from the perceptions that people have of us. Social media has become an interactive résumé so to speak. A quick peek at someone’s Facebook or Instagram page can give you an unfiltered look into what appears to be a person’s lifestyle. The question today is... How true and authentic is a person in comparison to the way he/ she appears to be? Our perceptions can be ver y inaccurate when evaluating the qualities and traits of those with whom we have not met. Having an actual conversation has almost become all but obsolete. Perhaps with all of the “lights, and cameras,” not to mention the games and the endless amounts of apps, we have come to overlook the value of using our mobile devices to verbally communicate. It is true; nothing can take the place of interacting with another human being. However, that does not stop the constant quest of creating a society, that prefers to interact with a device instead of another person. I met my wife two years ago at a gathering. We spoke brief ly and were ver y cordial. Although we did not exchange numbers at the time, we were able to connect at another gathering and have brief conversation. Af ter our second meeting. I begin to develop more of an interest in her. Again, we did not exchange numbers; however, with the help of social media, I was able to find her FB page and request her friendship. I was elated to be able to see her pictures and the many events she posted. I was clearly looking to see if there was a man in her life and any signs of her being married. I know, I know, there is limited information you can gather from social media; yet, it was a way for me to learn as much as possible before expressing my interest in becoming better acquainted with her. We soon began to communicate through instant messenger and had brief interactions on occasion. Shor tly thereaf ter, we scheduled time to talk over the phone, which soon became a nightly delight. Although she lives in New Jersey and I lived in New York, the distance between us was shor t and of no challenge for us to connect daily by phone. Our conversations grew and blossomed like never before, I was taken back to the days where communicating by phone was the absolute and only way to communicate without being physically with someone. We conversed by phone for 2 1/2 months prior to seeing each other again. By the time we met up for our first date, we were not only well acquainted with one another but, we had already begun to develop feelings for each other through our friendship and several conversations. We spoke daily, and we texted each other in between time. We developed a mutual respect and began to fall in Love. We were soon in a committed relationship. And now af ter dating exclusively for well over a year, we are now happily married! In this present era of technolog y and information, be sure not to allow your messages to be unclear or misinterpreted. Your future happiness could ver y well depend on your willingness to converse. Do not allow inaccurate perceptions to speak on your behalf. Relationships are a linguistic phenomenon. Find your inspiration through verbal communication... Written by Sherman Pegués Awaken a 65 Day Journey to Discovering a Truer You, can be purchased through Xulon Press http://w w w.xulonpress.com/ bookstore/bookdetail.php?PB_ ISBN=9781622302802 And my audiobook Awaken a 65 Day Journey to Discovering a Truer You is available on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/ album/awaken/id1175276293 My blog, Adventures in Wife & Motherhood will launch March 1, 2018.