“Why Are You going on a Date?”

I recently had a friend tell me her 8-year-old son took note of the fact that she and her husband were going on a date.  This couple had not been on a formal date in years.  In actuality, they had not been on a date since before their son was born.  Recently, they have begun dating every week.  This last week, as they were getting ready to go out for the evening, their son looked at them quizzically and said, “Why are you going on a date?  Aren’t you married?”

At a young age, this child was already forming a sweeping perception based on his parents behavior: Married people don’t date.  If this couple remains consistent in their dating, they will be able to quickly turn their son’s perception around so that he will forever remember that his married parents liked each other enough to want to spend time alone together.  Now that’s an impression worth making!