Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man

when you go to church!” I internalized the message—if I got a
fresh haircut and I put on a nice suit, my mother would compli-
ment me, and I would walk out of the house with my shoulders
squared and head held high because my mother said I looked
good and she was encouraging me to be presentable. And my
father’s chest was out as far as mine because every Sunday, she
reminded him that he made it all possible; she kissed and
thanked him every Sunday.
A man needs that from his woman—he needs her to say,
“Baby, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate what you do for me
and the kids.” Those simple words give us the strength to keep
on doing right by you and the family. From working harder on
the job, to bringing home that paycheck, to something as simple
as throwing some meat on the grill on Saturday evenings or fold-
ing up a load of the laundry, we’ll do it more often if there is
reward in it. That reward doesn’t cost you one red penny. It
simply comes from the heart: Thank you, baby. I appreciate you.
You don’t know how important that is for your man; that little
bit of encouragement makes him want to do more. You think
because we’re hard and we don’t want to cuddle that we don’t
need that encouragement, but we do. And the woman who
comes along and says, “You so big and strong and you’re every-
thing I need,” well, we’re going to go get some more of that!