Real Couples // Spanning A Decade and Thousands of Miles: Soundarya and Anand

Real Couples // Spanning A Decade and Thousands of Miles: Soundarya and Anand

Far too often, we are asked to let go off things. But maybe, it is not always a good idea, not in all cases at least! Ours is one of those stories that proves otherwise. Our story spans a decade—a decade of funny, good, bad, and hard times, plenty of roadblocks, and inconveniences. We met each other 10 years ago back in 2007, in college in India, thanks to our friends who set us up. I was a freshman, and Anand was already in his junior year, and we had the most beautiful time in college, holding hands and taking long walks in the valleys, motorbike rides in the woods, watching sunrises on the beaches, sharing memories with friends and going to parties. Two years just flew by, and Anand graduated from college and decided to do his Master’s in the U.S. Living on two different sides of the globe didn’t make it easy, but we became the experts and ‘know-alls’ of video conferencing apps and international calling cards. After three long years, I moved to the U.S. in 2012 to New York to get my Master’s, and I fell in love all over again. However, this time it was with New York City, which I now call my second love. Anand was living in Boston by then. Living in the same country made things a lot easier for our relationship. We had our shares of fights and break-ups, but in the end, we "always found our way back to each other." I recently moved to Philly for a job, so we are still in a long-distance, although a shorter distance, relationship, and we are still counting up those air miles/burning up the highway, and we are happy.

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Real Couples // Long-Distance Love Story: Jen + Amy

Real Couples // Long-Distance Love Story: Jen + Amy

Amy: I lived in California, Jen lived in Chicago. A mutual friend introduced us, and our distance apart couldn’t hold us back from experiencing an instant, electric connection. I bought a plane ticket to meet her in person, and as each day passed, we posted a hand-crafted number to count down to our first meeting. We had a little over a month to learn everything we could about each other, and by the time we physically met, so much care and trust had been built.

Jen: By the time the countdown ended, we had learned so much about each other and had grown so much closer. In addition to the daily countdown, we were also sending each other letters and packages and accidentally staying up until 3am on 6-hour Skype calls! We had fallen for each other, and meeting each other in person only validated everything we had been feeling. Amy and I also started an Instagram account and blog to keep sharing with each other through the distance.

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My Feminist Wedding // Long Distance Engagement

My Feminist Wedding // Long Distance Engagement

Next summer, I will marry a man who has never lived in the same state as me. My fiancé, Greg, and I met on Tinder two years ago, and since then, we’ve taken turns to visit each other every weekend at my home in Natick, Massachusetts, and his in Manchester, Connecticut. 

Even getting married won’t guarantee that we can live together, as school and work tie us to our respective states for the foreseeable future. While there are times when this arrangement is difficult (mostly when I’m sitting on the Mass Pike in traffic), it has strengthened our relationship by making us truly appreciate our time together. Besides, you don’t pass up the love of your life because he’s geographically undesirable.

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Millennial Marriage: Long Distance Loving You

Millennial Marriage: Long Distance Loving You

My husband and I spent half of the last year apart. We were not forced into a distance relationship by factors outside of our control, but rather, like many Millennials with our privileged upbringings, lifestyle options seemed endless despite limited career realities, and our jobs and interests led us in different directions. Adam’s employer decided to transfer him from Washington, D.C. to Houston, Texas right before Volume One of Catalyst Wedding Magazine went to print and just as I began to feel rooted in a community of District creatives. We had been married a little over a year when I tentatively told him that in my heart of hearts, I was not ready to leave and proposed that he move to Texas alone. Always my biggest believer, he barely winced and got to helping me find a room to rent on Craigslist. Ever the realist, the day he left for Texas he gave a little spiel about what administrative things I should take care of if he were to die before we were reunited, and I verbally willed him eleven boxes of wedding magazines through teary eyes.    

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