The Small Things

They say that it's the small things in a relationship that make all the difference. The little gestures of kindness, the smiles and subtle signs of affection, the tolerant demeanor when I have a crying fit, etc. But seeing how our significant other treats friends and strangers can also be a nice reminder of why we love that person so much.

Last night after meeting me at happy hour with some of my co-workers, Mr. Cupcake followed me home, and immediately as we were walking in the door, his cell phone rang. It was a good friend (and one of his groomsmen) who found a leak in a pipe in his house, and called Mr. Cupcake for some guidance. Although he works behind a desk for a construction company now, Mr. Cupcake worked in the field as an electrician all through college and the following few years, and to say he is "handy" is grossly underestimating his skills. (I'm not just bragging because he's my future hubby — the boy knows a LOT about all aspects of construction.)

So there we were, at 8:00 on a Thursday night, not too far off from Mr. Cupcake's usual bedtime (since he wakes up at 5 a.m.... just thinking of waking up that early makes my head hurt), and ready to relax. He was trying to talk his friend through his plumbing problem, but was concerned that things might not go right, so he told him he'd be right over. "Right over" is 40 minutes away, so once he would get there, help him resolve his problem, and get back home again, it would likely be at least 11:00. But he went, without hesitation, to help his friend out.

I know that most people treat their friends with kindness, but gestures like this make me love Mr. Cupcake even more. I know he genuinely wants to help and he doesn't feel at all burdened. I realize that he wasn't driving 200 miles in the middle of the night during a blizzard to help a friend with a burst pipe, but nonetheless, he went out of his way to help his friend because that's just what he does.

What kind of things has your fiance done for others that has made you fall in love all over again?