Every time I see a question like this, I feel a deep sense of exasperation.
Because almost without fail, the answers that follow are a crowd of people debating whether you should or shouldn’t wash the dishes — what happens if you do, what happens if you don’t.
It’s like mother-in-law and daughter-in-law drama. These petty domestic questions can be recycled endlessly without ever repeating themselves. That’s some reliable content gold right there.
I honestly don’t know what people are thinking these days — turning something as trivial as washing dishes into some profound and complex area of study.
Let me ask you something.
The first time you meet the family, which foot do you step through the door with — left or right?
Once you’re inside, do you sit down or stand?
Do you greet the father first, or the mother?
When you’re eating, do you reach across the table for dishes on the far side?
…
The enormous misconception so many people have is that they’re constantly trying to judge right from wrong based on a single action.
Ideally something nice and simple — just tell me: should I wash the dishes or not?
You’re getting married, meeting his parents, and whether you wash the dishes determines the entire future of your marriage?
Trying to draw conclusions about something complex from one specific, simple behavior — that’s just foolish.
If you’re worth tens of billions and you go meet his parents, does washing the dishes even matter?
If your finger is broken and you go meet his parents, does washing the dishes even matter?
Flip it around. You’re the parents. Your child brings home their partner. What exactly does washing — or not washing — the dishes prove?
Is there any actual causal relationship between washing dishes and whether a marriage happens?
Some people think washing dishes is good; others think you shouldn’t. Both sides argue back and forth. Whoever posted the question collects the traffic. What exactly do you get out of joining the fight?