Scrolling through any one of my social media platforms, my feed is often saturated with cute photos of couples or back-and-forth commentary between two significant others.
And, as time goes by and people get more and more comfortable with sharing their lives online, my timeline becomes increasingly clogged with dramatic love proclamations on a random, day-to-day basis instead of the occasional anniversary and birthday posts.
"So thankful for this beautiful lady, can't live without her."
"Love this guy so much!"
"I have the most amazing girlfriend in the world!"
Pretty cute, huh? Sappy, but cute.
Sometimes I'd see posts like these and roll my eyes at the pure mushiness of it all. Eventually, though, I realized the eye-rolling probably stemmed from the teeny tiny bit of jealousy I liked to pretend I didn't have.
I've been with my boyfriend for two years now, and I've been tagged in a total of zero sappy and romantic posts on the Internet. I've never woken up to a long proclamation of love posted on my Facebook page or been tagged in a cheesy photo collage on Instagram.
No, not even on my birthday.
At most, I think my Facebook followers are aware that my boyfriend thinks I can be "kind of awesome" on occasion.
It wasn't until I was stuck in bed with a 102 fever during my short visit to my boyfriend's university and he took care of everything I needed without complaint that I realized the lack of these things offered absolutely no reflection of our relationship.
Have I ever gotten to smile and blush over a cheesy note on Facebook? No.
But, without fail, I wake up to good morning texts every single day. I've gotten love notes and chocolates in the mail, and my favorite flowers delivered to my door.
He has endured ice-skating trips, frequent Disney movie marathons, and (per my request) watched far too many chick flicks.
He's taken me on picnics in the park, walks downtown and hung out with me on the couch when the last thing I wanted to do was go out.
He supports every single one of my hopes and dreams, no matter how overly-ambitious they may seem.
He might not be engaging in the modern-day equivalent of shouting his love for me from the rooftops, but there isn't a moment that passes when I don't know he loves me.
When I see those cute posts on social media now, I smile. It's sweet that some people express their love that way. But I'm not jealous. The world might not be able to see it, but there are one million different ways my boyfriend shows me love – and that's more than enough for me.
