Change

Change happens to everyone. It's inevitable. However, change is not what makes a person who they are, it is how that person reacts to the change.

In the next few weeks of my life I will be undergoing a big change that will effect my life significantly. Now I have weighed the pros and cons, but still cant help but to feel that I am losing so much more than I am gaining. It's that time of year again, and after seeing my girlfriend for almost 3 months straight, I must go back to school, where I can only visit her once every few weeks at most. Part of me, actually most of me, asks myself why I decided to choose the school farthest away from home.
But change is not all bad. If relationships, and anything in general, were easy then they would not be so highly sought after. Every relationship has its own set of complications and challenges that the two people involved must overcome together. I know personally that I could not ask for a smarter, more mature, more confident and trustworthy person to go into this with.
I think the important thing to remember here is that the longer you are away from someone the happier you are when you finally get to see them again. It really incredible how much distance can strengthen a relationship at times. As long as you trust the person you are with and truly care about them, like I do, everything will work out

"So why do alot of your articles make it sound like our time is running out?"

This is a very good question for me to start with. As you probably have all noticed, I tend to stress the appreciation of the time we have. There are two main reasons I do this.
The first takes me back to my freshmen year in high school. To make a long and sad story much shorter, I lived next to my grandmother who was getting very old and sick. My parents left me the house for the night and my only responsibility was to check on her. In the heat of the moment, I opted to go out with a bunch of older guys instead for the popularity points, and while I was gone my grandma fell. My family found her the next day and by the time I go to the hospital she was gone. I really never did have a chance to truly say goodbye to her. It is a mistake that I am forced to live with for the rest of my life, and since I can not change the past, I want to use that experience to enlighten the futures of the people around me if possible.
The second reason is also self explanatory. I am currently in a relationship with a girl I care about very much, unfortunately, she attends school 350 miles away from me, and at times it gets very hard. I miss her almost constantly when I am at school and talk to her as much as I can, but nothing beats the feeling of actually being able to hold the person you care about so much. When I am with her I make sure that I appreciate every second of it and truly thank God for every time I get the chance to be with her. To get the most out of relationships, I hope you all do the same.

I hope this answers your question, and I am looking forward to many more in the future.

Close Your Mouths, Open Your Eyes

Guy talk more than likely has the largest effect on how men react in their everyday lives. Everyone is out trying to impress their friends, brag about sexual endeavors, and ultimately prove that they are the most masculine in the group. I am here to tell you now that it is attitudes like this that have lead to such high relationship conflicts and divorce rates in the United States.
There is nothing good that comes out of demeaning and sexually exploiting girls that you have been with, especially if the girl happens to be your girlfriend. Often times I have heard friends of mine go into grotesque detail about how they behave sexually with girls and often times these were girls that they were dating.
Being in a relationship is about having mutual respect for you as well as your partner. If this girl really means something to you, than just being with her and seeing her happy should be more than enough reason for you to be happy. Those who decide to talk about every little detail of their personal lives with every guy around them are those who are so uncomfortable with how people look at them that they are talking up a storm to try and overcompensate.
Now this not to say that talk about personal lives cannot be good. If someone is dealing with a trying issue with a girl than it is completely normal to ask a friend for help or advice. The question is, are these people really looking for help, or just another excuse to brag?
The whole reason to brag has always been beyond my comprehension as well. What are you trying to prove? We are all adults here unless told otherwise, we assume that everyone else has had some kind of a encounter with the opposite sex. So really, are you bragging to prove to others your adequate, or yourself?
I currently have a girlfriend and am involved in a type of long distance relationship. Being that I am in school a majority of the year, it gets hard a lot of time. I will however tell you that at no time did I ever brag to other people about her. As a matter of fact for a long time people did not even know we were together. The reason for this is because just being able to see her and be with her and actually hold her is more than enough to make me happy. I do not need to prove anything to anyone, and even if people were to assume that every time we are together we sit on opposite sides of the room and watch television, so be it. I care about her and respect a great deal, and I would never do something as disrespectful as talking about what goes on with us behind close doors. Why would I risk ruining the relationship with a person that has made me so happy for so long?
My point here is, we get too caught up with our own sexual innuendos that we forget to truly appreciate how blessed we are. Caring is more than just a feeling, it is an ability, and often times I find that people take complete advantage of that. Being that this is my summer vacation, and speaking from experience, I need to stress the idea that we should be appreciating every second we spend with these people we care about most. Close your mouths and open your eyes to how lucky you are. Put aside macho instincts, ignore the guys, lay down with your girl, and just thank God for every second you have with her.

The Drama Of Text Messaging

I love texting. I am a big fan of it and it really is probably one of my favorite recent technological advances. Having said that, people really put too much thought into text messaging. Allow me to explain...
When texting first came out, it was such a great tool for so many people. The working man was able to text measurements to a partner on the job site where it would be hard to find a paper and pen. High school students were able to communicate about the weekends plans in the middle of English class. Yeah, life was great. However, now we have these "texting rules" that have really taken over as our main means of communication.
My friend recently met a girl the other day, who gave him her number. She than told him to call her sometimes. Me and this friend were sitting in his apartment hanging out as he stared at the phone in his hand. When I asked him why he does not just call her his response was that he was going to text her, he just does not know when.
So finally he builds up the courage to text her and she texts back asking him what he is up to. He then proceeds to stare at the phone. Again I asked what he was doing. He told me that he didn't want to text back too fast because he does not want to seem desperate, and he does not want to wait too long or he will seem uninterested. He waited exactly 8 minutes, and sent the text "Nothing, you?".
Oh, it all makes sense now! She texted him as a test to see how long he would respond! Lets ignore the fact that she responded to his original message (which obviously means she is not completely ignoring him and giving him a chance) and jump to the conclusion that she is sitting in her room with a stop watch timing exactly how long he waits to text her. One second under 8 minutes, and he is done for. Please, give me a break. A text message was originally invented for convenience. If your busy when you feel your phone vibrate or hear your favorite N'SYNC ring tone, you can respond when your NOT busy. The beautiful thing about a text message is that its not going anywhere anytime soon. If you are not busy and see that you have a text, respond to it! Why wait? The person would not be texting you if they did not want to talk to you. There is no need to lose hair over it, just text her back.
More problems arise with texting, especially when texting an interest of the opposite sex. Phrases you meant to be sarcastic humor can be taken as a serious statement, and vice versa. My point here is this; if a girl says, "call me" chances are you should probably do what she told you and pick up the phone and call. Even if she says to text her, call her and show a little initiative. This texting drama needs to stop, and you can help! No donations or recycling is needed either. All you have to do is, next time you have nothing to do and you want to see what someone your not with is up to, pick up the phone, and call.

Family..1st?

We have all heard the expression : Family first, everything else can wait. However, the truth of the matter is that for a lot of people family may not come first. As we progress as a society the divorce rate has seemed to skyrocket, and as a result families are suffering. Now it is more likely a marriage will fail in the United States rather than last. How are we expected to put a family first, if over half the families we have are in pieces?
This is not the only problem. Parents in this generation fall victim to the two extremes. Some are extremely needy. You see these parents time and time again. They are the ones that try to be the "cool" parents. If this means taking the kids out to MacDonald's every other day, so be it. These parents try entirely too hard to be included in their child's lives. The reason for this is that they probably did not receive much attention as a child, and are trying to make up for the lost time in that relationship. As the child gets into his teens, these same parents are the ones that allow the kids to drink in the basement, and sometimes, even have a drink or two with them themselves. Although in the here and now those kids thing the parents are the greatest thing ever, the parents have zero control over the relationship, and that will never end well.
The other type of parents are the extreme hard asses that don't give their kids the time of day. Now by themselves, these parents would not be too bad. Sure having kids work for their own money and cook for themselves and handle themselves from a young age is a great asset to have and will surely help them in the long run. However, with all the neediness displayed by the other parents, the kids are now starving for attention they do not receive at home. This will ultimately lead to acting out and sometimes even seeking negative attention, as long as they are being recognized in some way. Also, this cannot be good.
my point today is the following. Although family is very important to a lot of people, it is not the top of every ones priorities. For a good amount of people, a best friend or a significant other will always be the first one they turn to. This does not make them bad people, it makes them people who understand the people that will help them most in their time of need and be there when nobody else is. Ignore the stupid expressions, do whats best for you.