It wasn’t until my girlfriend moved back to Penn State University that I learned a long-distance relationship between college students can be the solidifier or destructor of a companionship.
After moving three hours and 42 minutes away, my lady friend doesn’t know whether or not I’m boozing up at the frats, partying until the wee hours of the morning or awakening to my random dance partner from the night before.
Let’s face it, 197 miles is a significant distance for news to travel.
The possibilities for promiscuity are endless in a college setting, placing added pressure upon an already strenuous circumstance. Those who are in long-distance relationships should do so with a firm knowledge of what kind of commitment this type of association demands.
One of the best ways to make it work is trust.
If you can’t handle your better half going out into the vice-infested university nightlife without you, the relationship will not last. If you are willing to love someone from afar, you have to accept the fact that he or she can have fun outside the relationship.
“He didn’t trust me,” said Miranda Stephenson, a sophomore marketing major, about her ex-boyfriend. “He was always accusing me of doing stuff with other guys. He would call my friends when I wouldn’t answer. One day, I had 50 missed calls.”
“Without trust it’s not going to work, but if you’re on the same page, it’ll work,” Stephenson said.
Healthy communication is another proponent for long-term love. With the continuous advancement of technology, couples have plenty outlets to keep the lust alive. The long-distance game has changed by the use of free long-distance calling, text messaging, social networking sites, webcams and instant messaging.
Contacting your beau every day can alleviate mental worries. Knowing each others’ fears and doubts will bring future problems to light and prevent potential dilemmas before all goes to hell. With the remarkable advances in communication technology, two college students in a legitimate loving relationship could use these advances as the means for making it.
As long as two people can keep their values and various body parts in check, there is no reason for the love not to last. Even though it’s extremely difficult to toss and turn all night wishing my lovely was with me, wondering what she’s doing and when we’ll see each other again. Missing your mate can also add to the longevity of a long-distance relationship.
Who knows, my lovely and I may last another year – or another week. The bottom line in a relationship is what you make it. Only the two individuals involved can decide whether or not to be a part of an invincible union or fall victim to illusion of love.
Tom Rowan can be reached at thomas.rowan@temple.edu.
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