Try and try again

Dating is one of those ideas that perfectly fits the definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and hoping for a different result. With each new person we date, we wonder if things will wind up differently than they did in the past. But while the situation may look the same as it has in the past with someone else, we have to remember that simply by virtue of having different players, the end is not a forgone conclusion. It's a test, of your faith and your conviction, of your hope and your heart, but it is a test that can be passed and it's one that should be taken.

I have a friend who is facing the prospect of a long-distance relationship. He has tried them in the past and had them crumble down the road. Now, looking at the same set of circumstances, he wonders if his fate will wind up the same, if the distance means the end to a hopeful start.

I think the answer is no. I think that while it seems he is faced with the same situation, really he is not. He is not the same person that he was long ago. She is not the same person he was with before. They are both older, they are both more seasoned, they both understand that the fight is one worth taking on and the test is one to try to be endured. Because you never know where you will wind up in the end and you never know where you'll be standing on a given day, but you can know this: someone found after a long search can't be wrong, something delivered to your heart can't be easily dismissed.

So to my friend I say: try and try again. It didn't work out before but it wasn't supposed. to. It didn't happen before because it was not the right person. It doesn't mean that there is any guarantee now but it does mean you should try. It's a chance worth taking, even if you've taken that chance before. Life may be unexpected but it's rarely random, and it can lead you to be exactly in that place you were supposed to be on exactly the night you walked in.

So take a chance and hold out your hand and see who takes it along for the ride. Take each day to see what it brings, take each moment and appreciate what it has in store. The future will take care of itself, however it is supposed to, however it may unfold. So for today understand that you are not alone and that you will be adored, even from far away.

After all, this is the life.
Love,
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