I remember the summer before I started my first year of college; it was the best summer yet. All my friends were with me, we saw each other nearly every day, and we were all single. Being single in the summertime is practically the start of a binge-worthy rom-com on Netflix. But knowing myself I wasn't single for long. Sure enough, I was agreeing to go on a sushi date with basically a stranger and it felt liberating. Is this the only date we would have? Would I get food poisoning from the raw fish? Is he actually a prince of a discrete foreign country and I could be his dignified princess? You know, all the basic questions girls ask themselves before going on a first date.

Fast forward to now, and we are still dating. We went through what most people would deem impossible, a long distance relationship: college edition. This technically isn't my first long distance relationship, but probably the most relatable one and credible one.

At the beginning it was easy, we were both so eager to see each other and it was still a somewhat new relationship so the infatuation lingered. But like most relationships, routine started to settle in and that's where it got difficult. We were both doing our own things but also trying to find where we fit in each other's lives.

I am not going to sit here and tell you it was all perfect and rainbows. But the three main things that I would deem as important for long distance relationships are:

Communication

New Things

Small Gestures

Communication is relationship 101 for literally any relationship.

New Things is something that I think kept things going. Since he was driving to my area more often, we tried to do one new thing every time he came, whether it was a new restaurant, new place to walk around, new activity to do together, we did it.

Lastly, a small gesture was what kept winning me over even with the time apart. He knows decorating is my thing and every holiday he'd get me a little holiday garland or trinket or sometimes write me a little letter and in return, I would draw for him or pick up some candy we had been talking about a few days earlier. The small things let us know that we were paying attention.

A long distance relationship is DOABLE and I believe with communication, trying new things, and small gestures, distance doesn't have to be a barrier but an obstacle you can overcome with your S.O.

I am very lucky to be with someone who cares enough to take time out of their week to spend time with me despite navigating both our busy schedules.