The Yin And Yang Of Relationships

To some, finding Mr Right can be as daunting as the idea of a camping trip to Africa. The trick is to be open to new experiences and to not lose your way with unrealistic expectations.

When MBH (my better half) and I first started dating, we were drawn to each other by difference as much as commonality. Sharing a similar outlook on life helped us get past the stage of being just mates. But it’s our contrasting personalities that have kept the relationship interesting and fresh.

MBH is a great organiser. Give him a laptop and he can whip up an Excel document in a Sydney minute. I wouldn’t know a spreadsheet from a bed sheet and definitely haven’t got a head for formulas.

However, ask him to keep the house tidy and he’ll give you a blank stare. The notion of closing drawers and cupboard doors is as foreign to him as throwing away empty wrappers and taking the garbage out.

“Isn’t that what househusbands are for?” he’ll say. Some people love living dangerously.

But none of that really matters. What counts is that we fit together like an old sock in an old shoe and offset each other. He’s the quiet one. I’m the extravert. I rev him up. He calms me down. He has great taste in fashion. I’m more of a dag. You get the picture. He’s basically the yin to my yang.

Over the years, we’ve gotten used to compromise. Our needs and interests have changed as well. This includes holidaying as a couple. As a single man, I enjoyed travelling the world to remote and dangerous locations. Now that I’m with my partner, I think of adventure differently.   

When I tell MBH of how I once took a dump by moonlight in the wilds of Botswana, surrounded by hungry hyenas, with nothing but a bunch of leaves to clean myself with, he physically shudders, grateful to have missed the magical moment.

If I could repeat driving through Africa, I’d be tempted to lose the tent and adhere to my partner’s ideal of luxury travel. Throw in great food and a bottle of chilled wine and I’d be a happy man. Perhaps the mention of shopping would lure MBH into coming along. Now that’s what I call compromise.