Lunch

Today at lunch we had an interesting conversation. Somehow we got onto the topic of how guys and girls are different psychologically. Everyone knows that they are. Most people know how they are. But one thing that we discussed that I've never heard before is how we can apply that knowledge.

Throughout our discussion, our definition of guys and girls boiled down to this: guys are concerned with how things are. Girls, on the other hand, are more in tune with how they feel about it. The discussion was based on a description of a joint connection group that a brother and sister group had. The girls had talked the whole time, while the guys didn't say a word. We tried to find the differences betwee how guys groups operate versus how girls groups operate. It came down to the fact that guys begin discussion with a statement about what is, which is followed by another group member talking about what he thinks is. In contrast, girls groups talk about how they feel about an issue, and why they feel that way, which is followed in the same way by another girl.

The difference between guys and girls means that there will be a difference in how they interact with others, both of the same gender and of the opposite. Guys make friends by doing stuff with other guys. If you play a game of basketball with someone, that is how you are able to get to know them. You may not know their beliefs favorite color, birthday, etc, but you get to know their character, their personality, their temperament. By contrast, girls make friends by talking to one another. I'm not a girl, so I can't say for sure, but I would imagine that this is how girls find out the same things as guys do playing a game. To be perfectly honest, I truly don't understand how, but that simply emphasizes the point that we are different.

As to interaction between guys and girls, this means that they will not get the same meaning out of the same experiences. Girls tend to read more into things that are said than guys do; guys take it at face value. Guys tend to read more into a girls actions than girls do; girls take it at face value. As to application of this, I think the best interaction between guys and girls should be active, but also quiet, so as to give opportunities for conversation. Exxample: Walks. On walks, there is always something to distract when conversation trails off. On the other hand, they can also provide plenty of conversational topics. Everyone's happy.

Most of this was discussed at lunch today, but some of it was me thinking it over and analyzing it a little more later in the day. Let me know your thoughts.