Love, Long Distance

Two weeks from today, Gerard and I will have been engaged for a year. If you had told me three years ago that I would be in a long distance relationship, not to mention a long distance engagement, I would have laughed it off. I honestly didn't believe in long distance relationships back then.

Over the last year and a half, I've read a lot about long distance relationships. How it helps to work toward a goal, the importance of keeping communication lines open, make each other a priority, etc. And of course, with the technology available today, keeping in touch is never a problem. (More on that later.)

Gerard and I were very close, the ten years or so before we decided to tie the knot. Sure, we had our ups and downs as with every relationship and the decision to spend the rest of our lives together came after much thought and reflection. We eventually came to realize that we had changed for the better, that we had matured and that we were ready to take the next step. He often tells me that it's as if he was waiting, not consciously, but just waiting, for the right time. Whereas I, had to realize that he had always been there, all along.

To quote from the famous "Partners & Marriage" Paper of Eduardo Calasanz of the Ateneo de Manila:

"The truly lucky people are the ones who manage to become long-time friends before they realize they are attracted to each other. They get to know each other's laughs, passions, sadness, and fears. They see each other at their worst and at their best."

This, is where I truly believe with all my heart, where we are. Though we may not be physically together every day, we are priority in each other's lives and we share everything. There is no detail too small or too trivial, if we want to talk about it. And we laugh. Boy, do we laugh, sometimes til the wee hours of the morning.

As of now, we're planning on trying the knot hopefully sometime early next year. To some, that may seem a lifetime, not to mention the distance that engulfs us. But not a day goes by that we don't let each other know how important the other one is. We're working on spending the rest of our lives together and I have complete faith that we'll get there.

P.S. If you would like to read the whole peice of "Partners and Marriage" you can find it here. It's a beautiful, thought-provoking piece with wonderful insights.