Catwings, Spatula of the Lord

Best Friend, I want to sit so close to you that I have to brush your hair out of my face. Long Distance Friend, I want to lie in your bed together and watch youtube videos. Lonely Friend, I want to sit your lap. Let’s hold each other close. Internet Friend, I waited for so long to hug you. Can we hug all the time? Tired Friend, let me know when you want to start another TV show. I’m ready. New Friend, I want to hold your hand. Is it too soon for that? Dear Sibling, I want to cuddle with you. Your cat can join us. Your partner can join us. Dear Friends, I want to curl up with you and rest. ~Maia Kobabe, 2021

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Now, I’m not saying romantic relationships are inferior, or that they’re useless, or that you being in one or that you shipping some characters romantically is Bad or something off the walls like that. What I’m saying is that two people (or characters, since we’re talking shipping here) can be just as devoted to each other, love each other just as deeply, mean just as much to each other while being in a platonic relationship. The end point of caring about someone doesn’t have to be romance.

Friendship isn’t a stepping stone between strangers and romantic partners, it’s a different path. And you can follow that path as deep into the wood as a romantic one if you want, and neither is inferior to the other, they just have different views.

reblog my aro posts you cowards

ABSOLUTELY TRUE

There’s even some characters whose relationship seem so much more interesting as friends. Like “oh, they’ll tear the goddamn world apart for their friend, this is great” turns into “Oh, okay, they’re a couple. Never seem that one before, I guess”

That last addition is such a mood. Making or keeping a relationship platonic isn’t making it “less” so much as giving it a different “flavor” altogether. A story about sacrificing oneself to save one’s friend is just as powerful as doing so to save a lover, but the two situations aren’t interchangeable; the implications would be very different and would pretty much tell a different story. While labels can be useful sometimes, they can also be restrictive if we rely on them too much. Reducing relationships, fictional or otherwise, to one of a few boxes that follows well-defined formulas (mostly US or euro-centric, at that) is bland/uncreative at best and gross/reductive at worst, and portrayals of relationships would be so much richer if the nature and characteristics of each relationship was defined by and unique to the people in the relationship itself.

Given the context of romance being oversaturated and dumbed down so much in pop culture (which is also a big issue in and of itself, to reduce even romance to generic tropes for mindless public consumption), a story about someone tearing the world apart for a friend is ten times more powerful and original than “of course it was romantic all along!” As the previous commenter said… Totally never seen that before! /s

Can you do something for me, please?

I want you to reblog this if you believe that two people can be very close and physically affectionate with one another, but still have a completely nonsexual, non-romantic relationship. 

Even if the two people in question are capable of being sexually or romantically attracted to one another. 

Because the friendship I share with someone I consider family in a way that transcends blood has been typecast as a romantic relationship ENTIRELY too many times, and I’m beginning to get sick of it. 

I’ve never reblogged anything faster.

banish the idea that platonic love is a lesser form of love

if you go through life not investing in your friendships the same way you invest in romantic relationships, you will always be looking for love, feeling lonely, completely blind to the love all around you

friendship is not a lower level relationship. it is not a lesser form of love.

— not every beautiful thing has to be a love story (g.c.r.)

Thank you @flowing-river24 for helping me figure out how to finally reblog this with the correct attribution!