To Be Loved Is To Be Changed

About

To Be Loved Is To Be Changed is a quote from Twitter user @tacticalcoqette commenting on before-and-after pictures of a well-loved stuffed animal. The quote soon spread widely on Twitter in February 2023 as other users began applying it as a catchphrase to various images and wholesome memes.

Origin

On February 15th, 2023, Twitter user @steviaplath^[1] showed before-and-after images of a stuffed sheep toy, with the "after" picture showing it withered and dirty. The user captioned the image "Too much love." In response, Twitter user @tacticalcoqette^[2] responded, "Just the right amount :) to be loved is to be changed," gaining over 1,100 retweets and 6,800 likes in less than a week (full exchange shown below).

Spread

On February 20th, 2023, Twitter user @muttzone^[3] posted a picture that applied the quote to the Well-loved Garfield Plush, gaining over 30,000 retweets and 189,000 likes in three days (shown below, left). On February 22nd, Twitter user @MrFishtopher,^[4] a Twitter account dedicated to a cat, posted before-and-after pictures of the account's cat with the caption, gaining over 22,000 retweets and 196,000 likes in one day (shown below, right)

On February 23rd, the Twitter account @daily_plushies then posted a video montage of well-loved stuffed animals centered around the catchphrase, gaining over 10,000 retweets and 50,000 likes in less than 24 hours (seen below).

As the quote spread, it was often paired with images of pets, stuffed animals or various pop culture characters. For example, on February 22nd, 2023, Twitter user @p4intedlady^[5] applied the quote to Korra from The Legend of Korra, gaining over 80 retweets and 430 likes in one day (shown below, left). The following day, user @S0FTC0FFIN^[6] applied it to pictures of a cat, gaining over 25 retweets and 260 likes in less than 12 hours (shown below, right).

Oh To Be Loved Is To Be Changed TIkTok Trend

In early October 2023, the trend became very popular with pet owners on TikTok, inspiring them to share how their animals are currently after they were adopted or saved from an abusive situation. For example, on October 3rd, 2023, TikTok^[7] user @ichysmom posted the moment they adopted their cat Ichabod (shown below, left) and how he is now (shown below, right). The post amassed more than 4 million plays and 992,000 likes in three days.

The wholesome and emotional aspect of the trend also inspired ironic videos on TikTok. For instance, on October 4th, TikTok^[8] user @kortcrux111 posted a video crying about all of the pet content she was seeing in the trend (shown below, left), garnering over 1.2 million plays and 329,000 likes in a day. The same day, TikTok^[9] user @emmwee also posted a video crying with the overlay text saying "This trend is making me sob my eyes out." The post (shown below, right) amassed roughly 54,000 likes in a day.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References