I Almost Stayed Home… But Love Changed Me Instead
Have you ever almost stayed home… and accidentally grown instead?
“I’m not going to dance, it’s daytime,” my bestie Carmen said, already negotiating her way out of it.
“I’ll take care of Toto.”
Honestly? I was tempted to join her.
Leo had his headphones on, sprained foot and all, getting ready to DJ at a sunset gathering. This is his newest passion. He’s still directing, still creating, still fully himself… and now there’s music too. A new spark.
If I’m honest, I would have preferred cards and a book. Quiet. Predictable. Familiar.
But then I looked at him.
He looked so young. So alive. Excited to share something new with me.
And I thought, okay. I’m going.
For the past few months our house has slowly turned into a music studio.
Morning coffee? Electronic beats.
Afternoon emails? Deep house (not every day).
Dinner prep? Spiritual techno.
At first I resisted. Then we set boundaries (headphones when I reached my limit). Then I adjusted. And somewhere along the way, I started noticing my favorite parts.
So when the sunset set began—golden sky, ocean breeze—I did the thing I thought I wouldn’t do.
I danced.
All in. Sweating. Laughing. Completely there.
And in the middle of it, I realized something simple and powerful:
I’m so glad I didn’t stay home.
I wouldn’t have chosen that evening for myself. And yet it gave me something I didn’t know I needed.
That’s when it clicked.
When one person in a relationship stretches—even quietly—the other one stretches too.
You think you’re just accompanying them.
But you are being changed.
And the real question becomes: are you ready for that?
Are you ready to let love move you out of your comfort zone?
Are you ready to meet the version of yourself waiting on the other side of “yes”?
Maybe you’re entering a chapter where you choose dancing with friends over reading a book.
Maybe you’re more open than you thought.
Maybe comfort isn’t the only thing calling you anymore.
We talk about love as romance. As stability. As safety.
But the true power of love is transformation.
Our partners are often our greatest teachers. Not because they lecture us. But because they invite us—sometimes without words—to grow.
Long love isn’t about staying the same. It’s about being willing to evolve together. To adjust. To soften. To stretch.
And sometimes that stretching introduces you to a new you.
This Valentine’s Day, maybe the question isn’t “Do we still feel the same?”
Of course you don’t. You’ve both lived. You’ve both changed.
The real question is this:
Are you willing to let love change you?
Are you willing to meet who you are becoming?
Because sometimes love looks like candles and flowers.
And sometimes it looks like dancing in broad daylight… when you were certain you were the one who preferred the quiet chair and a book.
