Real Talk. Did my husband just call me bro, bro? Dude, did he just call me dude? Understandably we lived together in San Diego and Hawaii, so I expected a little bro-talk every now and then. But I’m his wife.
Television taught me that the terms of endearment he should be calling me are things like: honey, sweetheart, darling. Most of the time, I get “babe” or “baby” which is fine. But “dude” and “bro”? When did I join Alpha Man Alpha and pledge to be part of his bromance for life? Is the mark of a turning point in the relationship? If he calls me a term he calls his friends, does that mean he sees me as less of a wife? More buddy, less spouse?
Perhaps I’m overthinking it, and it’s just how today’s vernacular is transforming. It does makes sense. Gone are the days of “sugar”, “doll”, “buttercup”. Maybe “babe”, “dude”, and “bro” is where’s it at now.
I have to wonder …is that ok? Previous terms of endearments towards women were feminine, dainty, and indicated affection or sweetness. Now they’re much more gender neutral and allude to no sense of reference at all. Ladies, did our recent rise of feminism truly push men to see us as equals?
…yeah right.
I realize that when he calls me “bro” or “dude”, it means he’s completely comfortable with me. Like the comfort you feel when you’re talking to your best friends. There’s no “trying too hard” anymore. Our communication just comes natural. I guess I should take it as a compliment that he sees me as one of his “buddies”, and not the girl who “makes me food, gives me kisses, and is having my baby”. Maybe this is the direction our relationship is going in. We’re comfortable being lovers and “friends”. I’m his partner in life, and his “bff”.
…and that’s cool with me, bro.