Summer seems like a good time to fall in love, right? No bogus papers that go on for eons about nothing, no lack of time to spend sitting by the beach to tan, no worrying about having to wake up for that 8 a.m. class. The scene is painted out for us in countless movies like "Grease" and others. But on the other end, we are scared to let ourselves fall in love. We are scared to be hurt, and to hurt. We are scared that we won’t have enough time to invest into a relationship once school starts. We are scared that things won’t work out. But I am here to say one thing, love that breeds in the summer or the winter is all the same. Love is love, but there is a different between a summer fling, than a relationship that begins in the summer.

I am no expert on love. I have only been in one relationship with a guy. Through this relationship though I have gathered facts from elders around me, and seen certain things in action in my parents' marriage. I am coming to debunk some serious stigmas about relationships in the summer. I believe that there is a difference between love and lust, love is hard work, and that love is a universal feeling, it has no expiration date.

I believe that there is a difference between love and lust. I believe that yes, you should be attracted to your partner, and your partner should be attracted to you. I also believe that your partner needs to respect you as a person with a heart, mind, soul, spirit, not just your body. Love is when a deep conversation can go on for hours on the beach. Lust is when all he cares about is what look like on the beach. Love is when someone respects you and your thoughts. Lust is when someone wants what they see physically for themselves. There is a difference between love and lust, one is beneficial, and the other makes kings give up their birthright.

One statement that I know for a fact is that love is hard work. Love takes more time to breed, in most cases, than one summer. You truly learn to live more over time. The happiest day in your relationship shouldn’t be the first day, it should be the present day. Being in a relationship also shows you where you are lacking in certain areas. For example, my one relationship. I thought going into it, that I was patient and gentle, but in reality I was not. Over time I have worked on it, but when you yoke yourself with someone else that wants to see you grow, you will be corrected by them. The best friendships are those that corrections and rebukes are made out of love, and the person is willing to help you through it and show you an example by their own actions.

Love has no expiration date. Love is a force that brings a family together, that bonds a mother to her child, a man to his mother and many more things. It does not matter the time of year when you begin your relationship, it matters what you do with it. When the going gets tough are you willing to tough it out, or will you cower back and just break up with him because you are scared of what could happen? True love doesn’t hold to a time frame, it is unpredictable but somehow preplanned. In the end, it doesn’t matter that you began your relationship in the summer, it matters where you are going with that relationship. The respect between you matters, the communication between you matter, not the time of year you began dating.