If you hang around Christians long enough, someone is certain to start talking about their love language.  Soon after that, they’ll ask you what your primary love language is.  If you have no clue, don’t worry–just go here and find out.  It’s more about how you receive love than it is about putting you in a box.

While my score is pretty static across 4 of the 5 expressions, one is definitely more pronounced than the rest.  Receiving gifts is the way I feel most loved.  It doesn’t have to be a big gift, but it does have to be a thoughtful gift (of course, big gifts are very welcome, too.  I’m an equal opportunity receiver.)  When I first learned that was my love language I felt kind of bad. It felt like I had the most demanding and unreasonable of the languages.

I’ve since learned they can all be demanding and unreasonable if they’re taken to the extremes.  Receiving gifts isn’t any worse than feeling loved by acts of service, physical touch, words of affirmation, or quality time.  It’s just different.  I can live with that.

My family is fairly fluent in all the different love languages, but–for the most part–we speak gifts.  When I returned from Africa the first time, my brother and I bought a few things for our parents–like a new toaster and a few other small kitchen things to make life a little easier.  We were concerned that Mom and Dad would insist we return them.  So we hatched a scheme to help them accept the gifts.

We decided to start a tradition of Tuesday Presents because, after all, who doesn’t need a valid reason to celebrate and give and receive presents?  We settled on Tuesday because it was the only day of the week that lacked any recommendation. Monday is sometimes part of a long weekend, and if it’s not . . . well it’s not exactly celebratory.  Wednesday signals the beginning of the end.  Thursday is celebrated when it’s the last workday before a long weekend.  Friday?  Well it’s always at least partially counted in the weekend.  Saturday and Sunday are their own happiness.  Tuesdays?  They’re either the Monday ofter a long weekend or nothing.  So we started celebrating Tuesdays.

Not every Tuesday gets celebrated.  That might seem excessive.  However, any Tuesday is open for celebration.  It has become the day we give “thinking of you gifts.”  Once in a while a package will arrive emblazoned with the directive, “DON”T OPEN TIL TUESDAY!!!!!!”  It’s especially bad when those packages arrive on Wednesday, but it’s also fun to anticipate what might be in the box.  There are also days when you get a Tuesday present on another weekday.  Those are very good days, too.

My nephews have taken to making videos (with the help of their very patient father) as gifts for my mom and me when we were both very sick this summer.  It’s a great combination of love languages that winds up in the form of a present.  If missed the masterpiece they made for me, you can check it outI’m joining the Faith Barista’s jam again this week.  Leave me a comment and then hop on over to the Jam and see how others are Unwrapping Love today.  You won’t be sorry.

photo courtesy of migs212 on Flickr Creative Commons