Love in translation |LOH #225

It was about two decades ago. I experienced a terrible miscommunication with my favorite friend. Everything I said was from a good place but he got angry so quick. He kept on misinterpreting all the information I was relaying to him and then eventually began pouring all his frustrations on me.

Although I kept on trying to explain myself, all it did was to make matters worse. And then what I dreaded most happened. He told me to leave him alone and that, I lost him forever. That was the first time in eight years of our friendship hearing my friend say such a thing to me.

I laughed it off because I thought it was a joke but when he didn’t laugh back, I realized I must have really hit a nerve that day. I couldn’t bring myself to accept that the one friend who has been there for me all these years suddenly wanted to cut me off. But then, I got to understand the topic I brought up for discussion was very sensitive.

“If I could turn the clock back, I would just undo all of this. I’m really sorry and never meant to hurt you like this. I love you and never want to lose you”. I told him, and after sometime, he reached out to me with an apology. And I’m so happy the issue was resolved.

My love languages
Someone said love languages are things we didn’t get to experience when we were kids and I so agree in every way. I grew up in a very busy family. I didn’t get to spend so much time with my dad because of his work which required him to travel a lot. My mom on the hand also had a very busy schedule. My brothers would also spend so much time behind their video games, leaving me mostly to myself.

For this reason, after I grew up, you’d mostly find me trying everything possible just to spend quality time with people I love. You’d always catch me trying to reschedule or cancel certain activities just to be in the same space with my loved ones. And in that moment, I always forget that there’s even something called the world out there.

Another love language of mine is physical touch. My favorite things to give and receive from people I love, people who mean a lot to me are random hugs and kisses. And that is why a day never passes by without me getting my morning forehead kiss from my elder sister before she leaves the house or me chasing my little sister around the house just to kiss and hug her before I leave the house. The hardest you will ever catch me smiling is after hugging my loved ones.

Yesterday, I was telling my friend how strange it is that, it always feels like there’s a cockroach crawling on my skin when someone I don’t like in any way touches me even by mistake or tries to hug me. But on another level, it makes so much sense. Because, love languages are more like a form of communication between you and people you love. And if any other person tries to speak that language with you, there’s going to be a significant miscommunication.