A Flicker of Light

Before all of this happened, I was actually very happy.

I was single — and I was genuinely happy being single. I had finally recovered after a pretty bad breakup. I found my confidence again, spent time with friends, visited new and exciting places, and I really didn’t have any intention of starting to date again.

I was fine exactly where I was.

Then, during my sick leave, sometime at the beginning of November, a friend came to visit me. We somehow ended up talking about the dating app Badoo. She showed me the guys who had liked her there — and she was almost crying.

And then a thought crossed my mind: maybe I don’t have to date. Maybe I can just use the app to chat with people.

So I reactivated my profile.

The Match I Wasn’t Sure About

Almost immediately, men started popping up. I wasn’t particularly happy about most of them.

Honestly, I wasn’t 100% sure about it. He had one picture on his profile that I really liked — all the others were related to running, which I wasn’t attracted to at all. Especially at that point in my life.

We started exchanging a few messages over the weekend, Saturday and Sunday. From Monday on, we decided it was better to talk on the phone instead of endlessly messaging.

I was very honest about my current situation. I told him I was on sick leave, so even if we wanted to meet, I couldn’t really go on a proper date. I had very limited time when I was allowed to leave my flat — two hours in the morning and two hours in the afternoon.

That’s how sick leave works in Slovakia. You have to stay at the address you officially report, and the social insurance company can send people to check whether you’re home. If you’re not, you can get fined.

He told me he was completely fine with that and that he was willing to meet me during those hours. We agreed to meet on Friday.

What I didn’t know at the time was that he took the entire day off work, because the time I was allowed to leave my flat was during his working hours. He wanted to be fully available.

The First Date

When he arrived, I was surprised. He was much shorter than I expected — still slightly taller than me, but not really tall for a guy. He was also very skinny. My first thought was that he should probably gain some weight, because if a stronger wind came, he might get blown away.

At first, I wasn’t that attracted to him. We went for a short walk and then for a coffee. He sat on the other side of the table and looked at me very intensely. I felt a bit weird about it, but I told myself that maybe it was just his thing.

Talking, however, felt easy. We always had good topics on the phone, and it was the same in person.

After another short walk, my two hours were over.

“Is It Too Early to Ask?”

After he left, we talked on the phone again. I asked him whether it was too early to invite him over for a movie. Not for anything special — just because that would give us more time to talk without being limited by the hours I was allowed to leave my flat.

He agreed immediately. We arranged that he would come over on Saturday, sometime around 5 or 6 in the evening.

And Then He Didn’t Really Leave

He came on Saturday. And since then — he basically never left.

This is how I met my husband.

I had been very honest with Peter from the beginning. About my health condition. About the possible spine surgery. He told me that we would manage it together.

I wasn’t sure. He was still a stranger to me, and I didn’t know if he would really be able to handle everything that was coming. But he did. He kept his promise.

He stayed with me throughout the entire sick leave. He managed the time before and after surgery. He helped me in every possible way — even when I was going through very difficult emotions. Questioning whether our relationship made sense. Whether I really loved him. Whether he really loved me. All of that was faced and overcome together.

Fast Forward

After my recovery, we tried to have the dates we couldn’t have at the beginning of our relationship. He was there when I had to start taking antidepressants. When I gained weight. When my emotions were on both ends of the spectrum.

He was there when the second sick leave started. He’s here now. Supporting me in everything I do — whether it’s crocheting 🧶, blogging, my job, or dealing with insecurities shaped by past experiences. All the things I carried from previous relationships slowly disappeared after meeting the one.

Meet Peter

This is also a small introduction to the person responsible for the more technical side of this blog. The love of my life. My partner in crime. My husband — Peter.

Sometimes, a flicker of light really does appear when you least expect it ✨