Rules for our Peace Corps Long-Distance Relationship

In a blog comment recently I was asked what our rules are for our Peace Corps Long Distance Relationship.  My answer is simple, we want to be together, so we choose to be 100% committed to each other.  Nothing is open, it is a real relationship with daily communication and yes, sometimes it takes work (just like any relationship).

It might seem incredible to some that I choose to be in a committed relationship with someone who lives oceans away and who I only see every few months, but I love this man. The thought of jeopardizing it by casually dating others isn’t an option for either of us.  Personally, I think once that door is opened you have basically said it’s okay if the relationship doesn’t work, and you are not completely committed to seeing it through. Can I be proven wrong? Sure, there is that chance that if you’re in an open LDR you might at the end realize how much you love the other one, but for me, I found the guy I want to be with, so I don’t want to risk losing what I waited so long to find. I wouldn’t have an open relationship with someone I wanted to be with if he was here in person, so why change the rules for a LDR? I would rather spend the weekends with my girlfriends or alone in order to ensure that at the end of my boyfriend’s time in the Peace Corps we are still together.