If you know me, I generally try to steer clear of such arguments, usually to fail due to my wearing my heart on my sleeve. Both a bane and a boon.
The argument quickly came down to this strange concept & construct we call "love." Four years ago, I was fresh off of a brutal break up and rejection in rapid succession. The thoughts I will present were formed within the last eight months due to the "recovery" period preventing my thoughts from broaching a topic that was still so sore. Even now, the topic still rends open those wounds, but recent developments have eased the pain and reinforced what I have come to realize and live by.
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Love, whether it is on or offline is a force that is extremely real. In my own eyes, it is a transcendental force. These artificial limiters that society has placed on love, like distance, gender, race, or even time, are shackles are so easily thrown off and yet...we just take them as they are. Many do not even question them. This saddens me to no end.
To get to the topic in and of itself, "are online dating & long-distance relationships not real," both are very real. Speaking as someone who is currently in a long-distance relationship with an absolutely amazing & beautiful woman, the distance actually makes the love we feel for each other increasingly stronger by the day; the old saying of "distance makes the heart grow fonder." The screens and the miles between us are no such obstacle to us. We do what we are able to.
Here's the key to these kinds of relationships: the internet itself. The internet follows a certain principle that allows people to show who they truly are, the majority of the time anyways. If two people communicate with this "veil" between them, then the chance of a relationship (which could just be a friendship or something else) could increase because being online terminates certain "physio-social" constructs which generally inhibit interaction at all, especially in the case of those who suffer from Social Anxiety Disorder, like myself. If anything, being online makes communication easier. I have made many more friends online than I ever could have hoped for offline.
But, I'm getting off-track, as I feared I would... I will leave you two
1. "Love knows no space, time, race or gender. It is a universal force that is oft misunderstood. Love, simply put, is love. If you're too ignorant to understand that simplistic concept, then please, leave others to love as they desire and love who they desire." (From my Twitter; over two tweets)
2. "Relationships [of any kind that are] built on unbridled love (not necessarily romantic) are, by far, the most fulfilling & rewarding. An ultimate goal." (From my Twitter)
If you think that love is purely physical in nature... I beg of you: Grow. Up.
Postscript:
I do apologize if this seems discordant, it is late and my thoughts are beginning to scramble. If you have found happiness, whatever it may be, I implore you, keep at it.
