Here are some examples, all said in a heartfelt, emotionally connected way: “I’m happy you are here”, “I start smiling when I see you, I like having you around”, “I like you”, “I like talking to you”.
I’m trying to imagine myself receiving this sort of compliments from someone other than a close friend, and I probably won’t be very happy about it… “I start smiling when I see you” in particular is vaguely scary (while the others are just blunt and would leave me embarassed).
I think it depends on the role of the person talking to you, including their age and gender. The more young, casual, and carefree they are, the more love they can get away with showing you.
The older, more professional and serious they are, the more weight their words will have, and the less love they will be able to show you.
The former group is less threatening, more lighthearted, and more naive. Even if they make a mistake, you will likely perceive it as adorable, whereas the latter group making a mistake is more likely to make you cringe.
For your example, “I start smiling when I see you”, it would probably be cute if a 4-year-old girl told you. Or perhaps a foreigner learning English could tell you this line, until they grow past a certain level of proficiency, after which they appear more mature and professional. When they act less correct and mature than what their character allows, the same words will change to look cringy or pathetic rather than adoring. You may get a feeling that they’re “trying too hard” or that they’re immature/childish in a negative way. I think these dynamics are really interesting
Interesting! I guess (sub-)culture plays a role here. I’m particularly surprised that hearing “I’m happy you are here” would likely lead to feelings of embarrassment.
I’d like to know more about your cultural context, and whether people in that same context would react in the same way. If you feel comfortable expanding/asking a friend (in a non-biasing way), I would be curious to hear more.
There’s likely to be nuances in the way I go about things that are hard to capture in text. Thanks for reminding me of the contextual nature of advice.
I’m trying to imagine myself receiving this sort of compliments from someone other than a close friend, and I probably won’t be very happy about it… “I start smiling when I see you” in particular is vaguely scary (while the others are just blunt and would leave me embarassed).
I think it depends on the role of the person talking to you, including their age and gender. The more young, casual, and carefree they are, the more love they can get away with showing you.
The older, more professional and serious they are, the more weight their words will have, and the less love they will be able to show you.
The former group is less threatening, more lighthearted, and more naive. Even if they make a mistake, you will likely perceive it as adorable, whereas the latter group making a mistake is more likely to make you cringe.
For your example, “I start smiling when I see you”, it would probably be cute if a 4-year-old girl told you. Or perhaps a foreigner learning English could tell you this line, until they grow past a certain level of proficiency, after which they appear more mature and professional. When they act less correct and mature than what their character allows, the same words will change to look cringy or pathetic rather than adoring. You may get a feeling that they’re “trying too hard” or that they’re immature/childish in a negative way. I think these dynamics are really interesting
Interesting! I guess (sub-)culture plays a role here. I’m particularly surprised that hearing “I’m happy you are here” would likely lead to feelings of embarrassment.
I’d like to know more about your cultural context, and whether people in that same context would react in the same way. If you feel comfortable expanding/asking a friend (in a non-biasing way), I would be curious to hear more.
There’s likely to be nuances in the way I go about things that are hard to capture in text. Thanks for reminding me of the contextual nature of advice.