My sweety poo

Those of you who have heard couples using terms of endearment(TOE) in public raise your hand. Those of you who have found them nauseous and pretentious raise your hand. Those of you who have made fun of such couples raise your hand. Those who are themselves now on the other side and calling their partner sweety poo or honey bunny raise your hand.

My interest is in a chicken-egg question of relationships. Does one start calling the other by cutesy pet names because of the closeness or does calling each other by cutesy pet names cause you to come closer? There seem to be two approaches to the sweety poo way. Some couples start off by calling each other sugary sweet grammatically suspect names. The moment the thing goes online, you're  rechristened. Its a new feeling and it takes a little time to sink in. In the first few days, you will suddenly stop what you are doing and have a "Oh I am not single any more" moment. Even if you were friends before, its a new relationship and the underlying principles have been tweaked. So a seemingly premature usage of the TOE may actually bring you closer. Its parallel to the leap of faith you've taken in entering the relationship. You jump with your eyes closed and hope to land on a soft feather bed.

Other couples float into the TOE usage unknowingly. You won't even remember when you started calling her with nonsensical names no one else on the planet understands. In fact you will be coining new TOEs which are not even nouns but just sounds. One fine day, you'll call out to him or her across a shop and not by his/her name. Both of you will turn a bright shade of pink and the rest is romantic history.  Its a natural transition that happens under the surface, unannounced and unacknowledged. You are now doomed to an eternity of funny name calling.

Take a minute here to pause and think of what you call him or her in your head. Name?baby?him?A TOE of your invention?Whether you started from sweety poo or eventually strolled into it, you and your sweety poo can always make fun of that lovey-dovey couple sitting at the next table.