Happy Wednesday all! The long distance story I have for you today will melt your hearts. It started as an adventure for Carolyn--and that adventure never ended. She met Kevin while studying abroad in Belgium in the spring of 2006. Their lives haven't been the same since that semester! With a wedding on the horizon, this pair decided to put an end date on their long distance, which helped them survive a 4,000 mile divide. You're going to love this one...
Name: Carolyn
Significant Other's Name: Kevin
When did you start dating? Kevin and I met in January of 2006. I was a junior studying abroad in Brussels, Belgium. I had just gotten out of a really terrible relationship, so it was a time for me to have my own adventure and start anew. I met Kevin after he overheard me speaking English at a French-speaking bar in a trendy, university neighborhood. We exchanged numbers at the end of the night…and the rest, as they say, is history! I decided to put my heart into this relationship and we let fate lead the way.
At what point did you begin dating long distance? Luckily, we met early enough during my stay in Brussels that we had about four months to spend together before I had to return to the US. We traveled all over Northern Europe and spent all the time we had together. The day in May eventually arrived that signaled my return to Chicago. So many of my friends told me that it would never work because we both had to finish our last year in college and that long distance doesn't work, but I kept reminding myself that the pain was worth it. KEVIN was worth it. We had decided that no matter what, at the end of the next school year we were going to be together, even if that meant someone was moving overseas.
How do you fill your days while you're apart? Skype is a godsend. If we didn't have Skype, we wouldn't be together and I believe that 100%. There is something different about being able to see someone and talk to them for hours on end (and not having to pay for it). Skype saved our relationship. During our year apart, we made a schedule of when we'd speak. We were up against a 7-hour time change, so we had to strategically plan our calls. That year was the most difficult year of my life. I was a senior in college and I was lucky to have good roommates. They didn't make fun of the fact that I was skyping with an awkward Belgian kid all the time and supported me when I was down. My family was also incredibly supportive. They believed me when I said that Kevin was truly special and they knew how important he was to me.
What do you find most difficult about being long distance? As Tom Petty sings, "The waiting is the hardest part." The most difficult thing about long distance is the waiting. I'm incredibly impatient, so having to wait so long to see Kevin was excruciating. However, both Kevin and I feel that in order to survive a long distance relationship, you absolutely need an end-date. Even if its five years down the road, there must be a light at the end of the tunnel….
How has long distance changed your relationship? Long distance gave us an unbreakable trust. We both knew that if we could survive a year living 4,000 miles apart, then we could survive anything. When things get tough in the relationship, like they inevitably do, we think back to that year and think how we can make anything work.
What sacrifices have you made in order to make things work? While we have both made sacrifices for each other, Kevin made the ultimate sacrifice for me. After our year apart, Kevin decided to pursue a master's degree in creative writing in Chicago was thankfully accepted. With the support of his family, Kevin left all he knew in Brussels. He left his friends, his huge family, and his entire life for me. I had decided to pursue a law degree, so my career was in Chicago. He moved to a city he didn't know because he knew I needed him here. He took a huge risk in his life so that he could be with me.
How has your life changed now that you're back in the same place? Altogether now, we have been with each other for five and a half years. We met when we were 20, so we knew we wouldn't be getting engaged any time soon. When Kevin first moved here, we were 22 and decided not to live together. We didn't think it'd be wise to jump into something that young. For three years we hopped between two apartments and then, just last year, we decided to move in together. In August 2011, Kevin got down on one knee and asked me to marry him one morning on our deck. We're so excited to get married next March, but we're even more excited to get to be together forever.
Though Carolyn doesn't have a blog, she certainly deserves your love here. Her story reminded me just how lucky we are to live in this technological age! I wish only the best to these distance warriors--and many years of happiness wherever the adventure of life takes them!
If you've emailed with your story, don't fret! I'm sorting through all of them as we speak :) I'll be in touch soon! See you all back here tomorrow!
