Big Girl Relationship

I am slowly but surely learning the difference in a mature relationship vs. every other relationship I've ever had. When you are younger, you have a boyfriend because he's the hottest guy on the football team and you're a cheerleader, so why not? You have a boyfriend simply because you can. You and your friends date guys who are all friends so that you can all go on dates together. Young relationships don't take any work because they are easy. You see each other at school, you text whenever you aren't together, you don't have jobs or responsibilities so you can spend all your time texting, talking on the phone, or going to the movies.

When you grow up, relationships change, just like everything else in your life. My boyfriend has a big boy job. A job he loves and is so passionate about, and honestly I love his job too. (After all, politics is what brought us together.) But to say his job is time consuming is an understatement. Needless to say, we aren't spending our days texting and talking on the phone for hours. The real kicker comes in at the fact that we are about 7 hours away from each other. So, not only do we not have time to talk, there's not chance at seeing each other. I don't have to tell you that this is a frustrating situation.

So I'm sure you're asking, why? Well, when you know you want to be with someone, you have to take whatever circumstances life gives you. I won't lie, I can be a needy girlfriend sometimes, so every now and then I pout and tell him he doesn't have time for me. (Yeah I know, I'm such a girl.) The other night while we were talking, he said something that really meant something to me. Sometimes he says really smart things, and I can't help but smile and be proud. He told me that he wasn't dating me just to have a girlfriend, or because he was bored, because he doesn't have time for a girlfriend and it was the last thing he wanted right now. He said, "I'm dating you because I want you, not a girlfriend, you. I know I have to make this work because I need you in my life." He's exactly right. We aren't dating because it's fun (it's not) or because I think he's cute, we're dating because once we met, we knew there was no way we could ever not be together.

I know it sounds cheesy, and trust me I want to vomit for becoming "that girl in a relationship." This relationship is different from any other. It's more like a partnership, we're sort of like a team. We met and our relationship happened faster than a speeding bullet, but never once have we questioned it. It's not fun, it's not normal and it's definitely not easy, but it's right. We know that we don't have a choice but to be together, even if that means we must work extremely hard at it. It's not fun now, but I know one day it will be worth it.