For the past month or so, I’ve been focusing on getting more personal content for the blog. At least one day a week is dedicated to this—getting glammed up, organizing the setting for the photos, gathering any props or ingredients I may need, finding the best lighting for the photos, and so on and so forth. Once all of that is done, my boyfriend will then help me by manning the camera and snapping the pictures. It may not sound like a big deal, but I’m always extremely grateful to my boyfriend for helping me out the way he does, and I make sure to let him know. The other day he looked at me and said: “It’s just photos; it’s not a big deal. Besides, for the past 8 years I’ve asked and still ask you to help me film whenever I need it and you always do.”
It’s true, there are many times in many different videos on my boyfriend’s YouTube channel in which I am the woman behind the camera. It’s never been a big deal to me because it’s the way he makes a living and, naturally, I want to support and help out wherever and whenever I can. All of this got me thinking about how we’ve come to be each other’s #1 supporters over the course of our near-eight year relationship. I feel like our support for each other has only grown stronger over time. This got me thinking about what support really means in my relationship.
Support is everything in a relationship. In a world filled with negativity and cynicism, having one person that you can always lean on and will help pick you up when you’re down, who may at times believe in you more than you believe in yourself, is everything. I can’t imagine what it’d be like to have a partner who wasn’t supportive of my passions and dreams. My boyfriend and I are there for one another, and in moments of self-doubt, we encourage the other to keep going. It’s easy for all of us to be our harshest critic, which is why my boyfriend and I remind each other of how far we’ve come, and celebrate small successes.
I believe one of the biggest things that allows us to support one another unequivocally is the fact that our interests are in the same general realm but do not intersect. For example, we’re both pursuing things that are “outside the norm” (whatever that means), but where our dreams and goals lie are not within the same exact field. Sure, we’re both creative and have fallen into careers where we can exercise creativity, but mine is done through this blog and his is through filming and editing videos for his YouTube channel. While we both believe in living an overall healthy lifestyle and staying active, he takes it a step further and is immersed in the fitness industry, specifically bodybuilding and powerlifting. I could go on and on, but you get the picture.
The fact that we each have our own individual goals and interests eliminates any potential competition between us (not that there should be, but sometimes doing things within the same field causes that inadvertently). This also allows us to confide in and bounce ideas off of each other. It’s great because whoever’s answering or helping with ideas or anything at all is able to do so objectively; when you’re not immersed in something yourself it’s easier to see things more clearly. My boyfriend and I truly understand each other on such a deep level. We have things for ourselves—our careers, hobbies, etc.—but we do everything side-by-side because we’re a team. We’re equally invested in what the other one is doing and genuinely, from the bottom of our hearts, want the other to succeed. Because in reality, when one of us succeeds, the other one does too. After all, we’re a team. Seeing the other one succeed and be happy and proud of themselves makes both of us happy because we know all of the blood, sweat, and tears that went into reaching that goal. We’re fully aware of the struggles, the ups and downs. Who wouldn’t want to see their partner succeed? Although all wins feel celebratory for both of us because we’re proud of each other, it never takes away the accomplishment from the individual. It feels like such a big win when the other succeeds because watching them reach their dreams is everything; there’s really no better feeling. That’s why helping the other one out when they need it isn’t a big deal; we’re invested in ourselves, each other, our own dreams and goals, and our partner’s aspirations.
