Day 01- (Romantic) Relationship

Day 01 – Your current relationship, if single discuss how single life is.



First off, I love de-motivational posters. I wanted to find some interesting pictures for this post on google image search and this was the first thing that caught my eye.

Alright, let me get to the important stuff: my current relationship.
I am happily dating a very wonderful/special/terrific/exceptional/beautiful/.../amazing woman at the moment. In other words, I am no longer available to the dating market. Due to a short supply of, namely me, an economist would point out that the demand, for me, will be higher. (yeah right...)
Mel and I have been dating for 1 year, 10 months, 9 days. To save you some trouble, it has been 678 days. I can't believe someone would choose to put up with me for that long! I guess she is a keeper.

Our relationship has taken a big turn since September this year. Instead of going to Nebraska, God has graciously opened the door for mel to U of A to study Occupational Therapy. I, on the other hand, am still in the great Vancity enjoying what it has to offer: authentic Japanese, Chinese, Greek, seafood, home cooked meal and a JOB. We have lost each other's physical presence and are now physically separated from each other.

Long distance relationship suck. If a person tells you that long D has done wonders for them, I bet you $100 that this person is no longer in a long distance relationship. *I am not promoting betting so don't ask me for money if you experience some rare case or met some lunatics. In short, take my word for it. LONG D sucks. Skype sucks. Sometimes I would have to say the same sentence 5-6 times or I would have to ask mel to repeat the same sentence.

Communication is tough when you have to keep repeating yourself and you only have 1 hour. Some days I felt very frustrated because we can't even get pass the day to day stuff and have a nice conversation. Your entire interaction with the other person is confined by a display box in front of you. You can't hug her or put your arm around her when she is upset. You feel powerless but panic on the other end of the screen. I hate that feeling...

I suppose I should also mention the "positive" side to this Long D. I am learning about what it's like to miss someone. Actually missing someone who you care about a lot and cannot see for an extended period of time. I think in this trial, mel and I are forced to trust each other and to trust God. We are learning how to support one another without the physical presence. We are learning to deal with conflict in a setting where exiting is just one button away.

Like any relationships, short D or long D, there is bound to be friction. So, I am being challenged to really listen and to admit mistakes. (I think it's the same thing for mel) The greatest thing about being a follower of Jesus is that he cares about my relationship. He knows that we screw up and we will abuse each other because we are selfish. A hard truth to swallow is that when I don't honor mel and wrongs her, I am also offending God. However, at the end of the day,I have assurance that I am forgiven, mel has been showing me a lot of grace in the process, and I can depend on Christ to change. A relationship is most rewarding when God is in the center to lead and the couple is obedient to God while forgiving each other.

With God's help, we are learning to see past the pixels in front of us and truly care for the the person on the other side.

Do I like long distance? of course not. But I love sharing my life, my day, my dreams with this special girl. I am knowing her more and more and I am proud to be in this relationship.

To quote Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NIV)

9 Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.


NO, we are not lying down together

But Mel are I are partners in the mission to carry one another and to sharing the best news from God to the entire world!