August of 2017 I embarked on the next phase of my life: college.

I was going 6.5 hours away from my home, family, friends, and boyfriend.

I was excited to be moving on and getting out of the hometown that had felt confining for the past four years of high school. I wasn't happy in my hometown, but I was happy with the people in my life that I was leaving behind.

When my boyfriend and I had decided that we were going to give long distance a try, I got a lot of mixed reviews. Some people were judgmental and told me it would never last, and others were more supportive.

My boyfriend was going into the military and would be departing for basic training about a month after I went to college. This would add a whole other level to the definition of long distance.

Those who were supportive said things like, "OMG, you can have cute FaceTime dates, phone calls, and you can have the cute homecoming videos on Facebook!"

If I am being honest, in my head I was like, yeah, that will totally be cute and so fun. We can totally do this.

But it is so much more than the cute moments.

There are moments and times where you are so lonely and longing for your best friend that it feels like too much. You see your friends around you with their significant others and your heart wrenches. Those around you talk about how they will be going home for school breaks and will be spending the whole break with significant others.

And you? Well, for you there isn't a guarantee for anything.

Will you see him for Christmas or Thanksgiving? I don't know. It all depends.

And if you don't have trust there is no way that relationship is working. The long work hours, school hours, busy extracurriculars, and other commitments get in the way and sometimes you go a long time without talking. Not to mention you will be meeting so many new people. Making new friends and getting close to other people.

Trust is key and without that trust, no long distance relationship would ever work.

Dating long distance in college is already hard enough, add on one of you being in the military and that is a whole other deal.

Military obligations take priority and you both have to push aside your own wants and needs for that. When seeing each other, you have to take into account how much leave your significant other has and if they will be able to get that leave approved.

You will be and most definitely are apart more than you are together.

Some people ask me why I do it. Why I go through spending holidays alone, dating through FaceTime calls phone calls, and texts most days out of the year.

I do it because of the love. I do it because of the moments we do get to see each other.

There is nothing better than that moment when you hear or read the words "I am coming home." or "I am coming to see you."

There is nothing better than the huge hug you get when you see each other again.

The feeling in your stomach when you lay eyes on them for the first time in months.

The cute, loving, and joyful moments of being in each other's company makes all the months apart seem like nothing and a distant memory.

So, while dating long distance in a college military relationship has its trials, the rewards are so much greater, and if you have love, you have everything you ever need to get through it.