Soul-mates. It's a simple enough concept. The thought that there is that one person out there that we're meant to be with. The one person who completes us, and who we're destined to be with for the rest of our lives. It's a lovely thought. And for some of us, a reality.

Out of the millions of people in the world, the probability of that one person living in our own backyard seems a bit far fetched. Why is it then, that almost anyone you ask, the idea of a long distance relationship is always destined to fail.

It is hard, and you will have to work at it. A long distance relationship is something not to be taken lightly. If you love someone enough to be able to work it out without seeing each other for weeks on end, it has to be love, right? It almost seems like a waste of time if it isn't.

"Aidin" was my first love. He still is the love of my life to be completely honest with you. We met, we dated, we had a great time together, that is, until he had to go back to school. We decided to try to work it out. After all, we did like each other a lot. It could work right?

It did for a little while. He even came to visit me for a whole week before school officially started. He drove more then 12 hours to see me without telling anyone he was coming. He rented a cheap hotel room, and stayed with me for about a week. Romantic, I know.

It was great. I mean, here's a guy who actually cared for me. He had to if he was willing to waste that much gas money, plus the cost of a hotel room, plus food and all that other good stuff. It was great. I'll never forget the time we had together. I can still tell you what shirt he was wearing when he came down. (A navy blue t-shirt with his school's name on it.)

Our week of romance came and went. It was torture to say good bye to him a second time, but I knew I had to.

Days passed and everything was going okay—for a while anyway. He'd call me, I'd call him. Everything was okay. And then I noticed the calls were a lot less frequent, and when we did talk, the conversations were a lot shorter.

Aidin was involved in a lot of after extracurricular activities, plus work, plus actual classes. I had to be understanding right? I had to let it go. I couldn't though.

Sufficient to say, it didn't work out. Don't worry, it's not a tragic ending. It was a mutual decision that it wouldn't work out. That's the best way to end things really, at least I think so. Aidin and I still talk regularly, and we're still good friends.

He's moved on, and so have I (sort of, like I said, he's still the love of my life). He now has a boyfriend that he loves very much, and I couldn't be happier for him. He deserves it. My only regret- it wasn't me. But still, I am happy for him, and I wish him nothing but the best.

My story may have ended badly, but that still doesn't mean that everyone is right, long distance relationships don't work. They do.

It didn't work between me and Aidin, sure, but there are several couples I know personally who have managed to work through it, and are still very much in love.

A particular couple I know, "John" and "Laura" have been together for more then three years now. Two of which have been separated from each other. The difference between John and Laura, and me and Aidin. . . they wanted it to work.

If Aidin and I loved each other the way John and Laura do, things may be different right now, and I wouldn't be writing to you about finding love, but rather, about being in love.

As Hugh Grant said in Love Actually, "Love is actually, all around."

He's right, it is. The only difference is, just because it's all around doesn't mean it should be taken for granted. Love may be the greatest thing anyone can ever get, so it shouldn't be a coincidence that it's the hardest thing to keep.

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