by Dee Shaffer

Created on: September 25, 2008

Todd and Melissa Gentry were debating about whether to get romaine or iceberg lettuce as they worked through dinner ideas in the produce section of the grocery store. In the middle of their friendly debate, Mike Shandler came up behind them in his good-humored way and interrupted the conversation with a boisterous hello to both of them. Todd and Melissa were both happy to see him. Mike is a fun, energetic, and outgoing person in their community and so they began talking their typical small talk.

Toward the end of the conversation, Mike invited them to a large social gathering he had planned on his 30 acre property just outside of town. That simple invitation incited two completely different internal reactions from Todd and Melissa as they both cordially responded that they would try to make it.

The three said their good-byes as Mike frolicked off and Todd and Melissa processed his party invitation. Todd's mind immediately moved into fast-forward and he became energized just by the thought of the loud, dynamic, and lively atmosphere of the party. He immediately turned to his wife expecting she would share the same level of enthusiasm, and was promptly reminded of her reserved nature as she quietly pretended to contemplate the two types of lettuce she held in her hand.

Melissas mind had moved into fast-forward as well, and she became anxious and restless as she considered mingling with multitudes of people, enduring endless idle chat, and the managing the high energy atmosphere. The thought of a large social gathering intimidated her and covered her like a dark, persistent storm cloud.

Todd's extroversion and Melissa's introversion collide in the middle of the grocery store that afternoon, and the couple was forced to face their profound differences head on. Can a marriage like this survive? Is it possible for relationships between introverts and extroverts to work? It is. However, the solution has nothing directly to do with these two personality types, but it has everything to do with their ability, willingness, and desire to honor and respect the needs of the other.

Everyone in this world is different from one another and we all have diverse personality traits and attributes that make up who we are and create our own uniqueness. Just because someone is different (or very different) doesn't mean that it is impossible to maintain a long-term relationship with them. If that were the case, we would all be living behind our own self imposed privacy fences because the

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