Long distance relationships are not for everyone. As with anything else, you get out of it what you put into it. It depends a lot on the type of person you are and how you view your relationship. For someone looking at your long distance relationship from the outside, without any personal experience, it might look like a crazy way to be together. And it is! But it works in its own way and has its charm and advantages.

For starters, you have a chance to miss each other. Sometimes a lot! And it’s not easy, believe me, I know. I have been in my long distance relationship for more than a year. He lives 2127 miles away and I miss him every day. I think of him all the time. I want him to be here with me and share my joys and all the little things that life has to offer. At the same time, I wish I was there with him to share his part of life that I have grown so fond of. We talk and text all the time. I don’t know if this relationship would have had a chance to blossom if not for high tech and ease of communication. Which brings me to one of the greatest advantages of a long distance relationship: communication. We talk in detail about our days and share our feelings. We write them down in a text or e-mail. We send virtual hugs and kisses, smiles and hearts. I keep my phone with me always as it is my love line.

We try to see each other every two weeks. I travel once a month to California and he comes to Illinois once a month. Once you get the logistics down, it’s easy: same route, same times, same airline. It takes a little over four hours to get from one place to the other. He could be in Indiana and I would be driving and it would take me just as long.

The best part of a long distance relationship is that you almost never argue. The everyday issues that cause problems in a normal relationship do not exist. You have a short time together and you make the best of it, no time for complaints of fights. I am always so happy to see him and I don’t care about the rest. I have no expectations about how we spend our time as long as we are together. We both have kids but we do a great job at clearing our calendar of any work related items. It’s our time.

The one thing I have a hard time dealing with the most is the day after we spent a week-end together. The day I wake up and he’s not next to me. You go from full to empty in a little over four hours. It’s not easy. You have to be strong and you have to find those special moments from the relationship to fall on so that when tomorrow comes, you are right back into your everyday life without skipping a beat. But you also know that in two weeks, you’ll be back to where life is the best.