This holiday weekend, I got the chance to escape the city to spend time with my boyfriend and his parents at their lake house in CT. And boy was it a case of the Tuesdays today coming back and wishing I was still at this home that encompasses everything you would expect of the word, and with the people that make it that way. Not only is it hard to leave behind a long weekend and dive into the work week, but it's that much harder when you have to part ways with the person you love too, say "see you so soon", and head on your way. Following graduation, we ended up in different cities, and after having done it for a while now, I have found that the day after saying goodbye, and having to re-set the clock until we see each other again always has a tricky way of being really hard.

As I was thinking about the weekend on the train ride home, I thought of a strong memory that I have of being at the lake, and it taught me something about these days of being apart, and anything that might be a bit hard for that matter...

There is one thing in particular that we have done a few times at the lake now, and always proves to bring a bit of excitement with it: putting in and taking out the dock. I've found that, while it is not quite as easy as it would be to plunk down in the grass and hope for a good tan, it's something I've really grown to love despite some hard work and stepping on a few rocks.

The topic of the dock has become quite the discussion! The process of taking it in and out can be excitement all in itself. When we put it in, it is often too early for the water to be comfortably warm, and by the time it's ready to be taken out, the water is already cooling off. With a rocky lake bottom, heavy dock pieces, and having to decide on the best layout, it is quite the feat to get everyone organized to put it in correctly and to not get hurt in the process.

While this may seem like quite the difficult task, some might say the benefit is having the beautiful dock in a beautiful setting, all that you can enjoy with people you care about. And while I wholeheartedly agree with all of those things, I think there is another benefit that can often get overlooked. Today, this realization is helping me while wishing that we were in the same place.

When we put in the dock, yes it might be heavy, and yes you might stub your toe, or maybe get a little frustrated along the way. But the memories of laughing about it later, and supporting each other when a piece gets hard to carry, and figuring out how it should all come together, those all stick with you. And at the end, you've built this incredible thing that you can share together. So yes it might be hard, but I secretly hope we always get to help put the dock in, because I wouldn't trade those memories with them for anything.

I realized today that the same goes for being in a distance relationship. It's hard work, sometimes your heart gets really heavy, and sometimes it might feel like you stubbed your toe. But the best part is you have someone there helping you carry it through, and figuring out how to put all of the pieces together. You get to hold each other up, and innovate with new ways to connect when you can't easily be sitting in the same room with one another. Just like you learn new things about one another while struggling to put a dock in, you learn so much about each other in a distance relationship. And when the distance is done, you've also built something really strong that you get to enjoy together too.
While I wish we were still together at the lake, and returning home to the same city, I also see how a little bit of hard work can be so very worth it, and bring you closer together.



Cheers to all of you heading into your week, and all of you also navigating being at a distance. I hope you can find a bit of joy in each of your dock pieces too. Have you had any moments like this too? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!