Relationships, Part One

"Stay your adorable self forever--don't ever change!"

Those words grace the back of my eighth grade yearbook. I've heard that statement (or something similar) countless times over the past few years as I've navigated through my high school years.

But when you really care about someone, you are willing to change for them. Willing to let the not-so-adorable parts of you go. Willing to be what they need, not what you need.

There is no greater love than this: that you would lay down your life for your friend.

Most of us will never even come close to having to physically give up our own life for the sake of a friend. But life is so much more than that, eh? It's your desires, your needs, your ideas.
So in a way, it's alright to change for someone by putting them first.

I had a real-life lesson in this this past week. I refuse to name names, but someone I care about deeply hit a rough patch, and learning how to deal with it has been hard for both of us. After thinking about it for a couple of days, I came to a conclusion. I told him I'll be what he needs me to be right now. And what he needs is something that's a little difficult for me to be. But hell. Love is sacrifice.