By Kenneth Stepp
Two cities far apart but with the same name. And that created a spark for me to write about long distance relationships. This morning I made a new friend. She reached out about something I’d posted. It was a romantic meme I suppose. I went to her profile and she was in Columbus Indiana. Today I find myself in Columbus Georgia. Synchronicity caused the spark to write about loving from a great distance.
Up until a little over 2 years ago I did not believe in long distance dating. I’ve had crushes on a couple of girls a great distance from me. In the end, we allowed the physical distance to overtake the emotional connection. After these two went nowhere, I resolved myself to looking local. Long distance relationships can never work, or so I thought.
I want to tell the stories about two of my friends. The tale of two women as it were. One lives near my family farm in Kentucky, the other lives about 60 miles away from the farm. Two Kentucky girls who are very different from one another. Both living a life that conquered the long distance relationship quandary.
One works for the state and works very hard. She has a house in Lexington Kentucky. One day she told me she met someone online but he lived far away. I said, those never work, but I didn’t know their determination. A little over 2 years ago he moved to her home and they have been doing life together ever since.
My other friend, she met her man much the same as my other friend did. I wished her good luck. They are so good together. They were married about a year and a half ago. Then they moved even closer to my family farm in Kentucky. I’d love to see all of them the next time I visit my family. I love their stories.
I’m a creative writer not a technical writer. It’s why I can make an error in grammar and miss it. It’s also why I never know when I’ll write or what I’ll write about. I seldom even know what I wrote until I go back and read it. This morning I had no idea I’d say anything. Then a message from 600 miles away. Not a flirt but a new friend. That was the spark. Funny how that works. I doubt I’ll ever understand it.
A little more than 7 ½ years ago, I met a girl. I was a brand new single after being with my wife for 24 years. She and I were electric together but didn’t last. It couldn’t have. I was too new and needed to learn what being single was first. I’m still unsure of all the intricacies of singleness. But I am aware of the confusion I feel trying to understand it all. After our breakup I began writing and never stopped. I wrote about her for years.
So here we are, in the craziest year the world has ever experienced and I’m still stuck on love. Have you ever had a long distance crush? Have you ever had a long distance relationship? My crushes ended in the brutal reality and they seemed impossible. My two friends found real love and a partner in crime. In the end, I hope their stories bring hope to those hoping that person they are falling for in the distance just might be their person. Hope… It’s a real thing isn’t it?
