“Long distance relationships don’t work” is what I constantly hear people mutter under their breath when I say my boyfriend goes to school 1000 miles away. Most people don’t want to spend their college years in a committed relationship, let alone one where they have to balance trust, fear, and distance. There are no words to describe the pain of leaving after any amount of time together, but what makes it worth it is knowing that in a matter of time we will be together again.

When you’re so far apart, you learn to appreciate the time you do get to spend together, but you forget to thank your significant other for the things they do on the daily. For everyone in a long-distance relationship, here are a few things you should thank your partner for:

Thank you for dealing with my overbearing “I love you” and “I miss you” texts when I am feeling lonely and for answering my calls regardless of the time of day. It’s hard to only communicate over a screen with so many miles between us for months on end but every day gets easier because we are one day closer to the next time I’ll be in your arms.

Thank you for occasionally skipping parties or activities so we can have a Saturday night Skype date. You bring me so much happiness when you agree to play stupid multiplayer internet games since we can’t play the board games that I love.

Thank you for spending an absurd amount of time driving or way too much money on plane tickets just to see me for a short period of time. Even if we just sit around, your presence makes the traveling worth it.

Thank you for taking time out of your day to write me letters or send me care packages. Getting mail is always more exciting than a text and when I see it is from you, my smile widens even more.

Thank you for never giving up on me. Sometimes I can be hard to deal with and I overreact, but you always are so understanding. Sometimes you are difficult though, so it is only fair that I have my bad days too.

Thank you for letting the little things remind you of me. It makes me smile when you let me know that you’re thinking of me throughout the day. When you send me pictures of the food you order at Taco Bell, I laugh that that is something that makes you think of me (but I’m also mildly jealous that you went there without me, so that just means you owe me a taco date when you get home).

Thank you for supporting me from states away. You always can calm me down in my moments of stress, and you believe in me when I have lost all hope in myself.

Thank you for always replying to my messages. This includes the one I first sent you when I slid into your DMs oh, so smoothly. If you hadn’t responded to my message because you knew the distance between us, we would not have made all the amazing memories that we have.

Thank you for discussing important decisions with me. It means a lot that you value my opinion and our relationship enough to talk about lifechanging events. I will always tell you to decide what is best for you, and I love how you respond by saying that you will because what is best for you right now is what is best for us in the future.

Most importantly, thank you for loving me. You have all of my heart, and I can’t wait to be together again. You restored my belief in true love, and you proved to me that the hardships of relationships are worth the struggle. I love you more than you know, but I will spend the rest of my life trying to prove to you your worth.

Long-distance relationships may not work for all relationships. It is difficult to spend months apart and still keep the relationship strong. If you find “the one,” then you know that that is a once in a lifetime feeling. There is nothing you can do but put your faith and trust in your significant other and believe that they will not cheat or break your heart.

Yes, long distance relationships do have their problems, but I promise that that moment when you are back in each other’s arms is worth all of the waiting.