It was my oldest daughter who started it.
Back when she was about two she started saying, “I like you” to me.
Of course, we told her we loved her all the time.
But she was the one to take the initiative to take things a step further. Even though she was so young, she recognized that saying “I like you” is different than saying “I love you”.
Upon first consideration, you may perhaps think of “I like you” as somehow junior to its heavier “I love you” relative.
Indeed, many of us think of—and even joke about—“I like you” as kind of “ILY Lite”, possibly reserved for when someone we’re dating drops the “ILY” bomb on us before we’re exactly willing or ready to reciprocate.
Her: “I love you.”
Him: “Uh…I, um…LIKE you too.”
While I fully get the dynamics of such an unfortunate conversation, I think it’s a mistake to automatically relegate “I like you” to the realm of the relatively trivial.
That’s because when used effectively, the phrase can convey as much, if not MORE power than “I love you” can.
Even at age two, my daughter realized that.
The secret to making “I like you” count is using it proactively instead of reactively.
Continue reading “Three Little Words (No…Not THOSE Three Little Words)”