International Love

Nothing strains a relationship more than distance. Money and commitment issues might be close seconds however. Many people say long distance relationships never work so why bother try. On the other hand, some people are optimistic on this kind of topic and believe that if the couple's bond is strong enough, anything is possible. I tend to look at life as if the glass is half full instead of half empty, so I believe they can work. Although with any relationship, no matter the distance, both people have to work at the relationship. Both have to try to make it work, meaning it will more than likely be ten times harder when you factor in the distance.   If you go into the relationship thinking its not going to work, then that's pretty much setting yourself up for failure. You should go into the relationship believing in the fact that you guys will both try to make an effort to make this work. Without believing in this concept, both of you are admitting to each other, along with yourselves, that this relationship is going nowhere and that there's no hope of a future for the two of you. There's no point in being in a relationship that's not leading up to something big, such as marriage or a family. Especially in your colleges years and or early twenties, which is when a lot of people begin to look for their soul mate and the person they want to spend the rest of their life with.  

 Looking back on past long distant relationships and seeing how they didn't work out isn't the best way to stay motivated and positive about the relationship. Maybe those other relationships didn't work for a reason. Maybe if you would've stayed with those old flames, you might have missed out on meeting your true soulmate. The universe works in mysterious ways and sometimes those ways can't always be explained. So instead of looking back on long distance relationships and only seeing the negative side, try looking at it from a new perspective. Try looking at it as a way for you to move on with your life, instead of continuously looking back.   Whether you and that special someone are a couple miles apart or even a couple hundred miles apart, relationships still take a lot of work. You have to show the other person that you care about them, which can prove to be difficult for couples far apart. Even though you may be in different time zones, showing your significant other how much you love them doesn't have to be rocket science. A simple good morning and goodnight text and or call will do. If you're feeling gracious enough, a surprise bouquet of flowers and or chocolate is also a nice little treat as well. With today's age of technology, it's much easier to communicate with people halfway around the world. FaceTime, Skype, Twitter, Facebook, etc. The closet thing to face to face communication is Skype or Face Time. Both have proven themselves as a life saver to many relationships all over the world.   Even though the stats are against you, having faith in not only your significant other but yourself as well can either make or break a relationship. Believe that it'll work and you never know what might come of that long distant relationship that no one ever thought would work out. Who knows, maybe wedding bells are in your future, but you'll never know until you try.  

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Goals and Motivations

Setting goals is a good and natural booster for your motivation. Knowing that there is a greater outcome at the end of everything you have worked for makes it easier for one to get things done. With the new year comes new adventures, new surprises, and of course new goals. Many people find it pointless to set new year's resolutions but if you actually try and challenge yourself, you would be surprised at how much you can accomplish in three hundred and sixty five days. 

When people want to get things done, they usually sit around and wait for someone else to do the work for them. Welcome to America. This is a sad but very true statement. Americans get lazier and lazier every year, and more people refuse to set new year's resolutions for themselves. Why is that? Why do people not believe in themselves to get things done in the up coming year? Many Americans are becoming unmotivated and lazy because they get everything handed to them in life and don't feel the need to work for it. I'm not saying this is the case for everyone who lives in America, but a good portion of US citizens just don't care anymore. 

The first week or so in January is always very exciting because you have no idea what the new year will bring. Many people forgive and forget what happened last year and want to start off with a clean slate. With a clean slate comes new goals. If you are willing to put forth the effort, setting goals is a great way to become more successful in life. You get much more done when you're motivated to get things done or make a change in your life. That's what new year's resolutions are for. To make a change in your life that'll make this coming year better than the last. Don't aim too high with these goals, meaning don't make up a goal that you know ahead of time won't work out. Setting high goals isn't always a bad thing however. If you set the bar for yourself too low, you might be missing out on unlocking your true potential. Challenge yourself but don't set yourself up for failure. If you need a little boost or motivation to start a new year's resolution, here are some helpful quotes said by some of the most power and successful people in history. 

A very popular new year's resolution is to lose weight. This is probably one of the most hardest things to accomplish. You can never truly achieve your goal because if you stop exercising or if you stop eating healthy, you'll go right back to where you started. However this is not a pointless goal if you set a limit for yourself. Set a goal to meet a certain weight by a certain time. This is very similar to pacing yourself throughout the year to make sure you're on track to meeting your goal. 

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After Holiday Blues

As the Christmas tree comes down, decorations put away, loved ones pack up their van and drive back home, people tend to feel lonely. No one likes this time of the year because it's not exciting to take down the lights and ornaments on the tree and let them rot in a box in the attic until next year. Looking around a once festive house and seeing nothing but bare walls can make a person feel depressed and sad. This is very common for most people to go through after the holiday season. However there are several ways in which someone can cope with this sort of depression.  

Find something to take your mind off it. Find a hobby that interests you; something that requires your full attention. Something such as a sport, both watching or playing can redirect your focus. If you're too busy focusing on something else, you won't be spending all your time worrying about things and feeling sorry for yourself. 

 If you look around and find yourself all alone, this can also cause depression. Engaging in a hobby that involves interaction with other living things can help lighten your mood and make you feel social again. That's why most people say to get a dog, they're social and feel like family. Having any sort of pet that you can interact with can help you feel less alone. Even if you're an introvert like me and don't like being around people, everyone needs the feeling of being social; that's one of the reasons why many people become depressed is because they feel all alone in the world with no one to talk to.  

The feeling of sadness and despair that follows January first can stay and make a home for itself if you don't do something about it. Don't let your emotions run your life! If you do you will get up like this girl. Nowhere to go and no one to love her because she doesn't accept love into her life. Don't be afraid of love just because you're not familiar with it.  

Eventually this feeling of "After Holiday Blues" will fade away into nothing more than old Christmas cards and lots of memories. However, it'll only go away if you let it. Many people say they don't want help because they don't want that feeling of loneliness to go away. They want to hold on to those feelings because that's all they have left of those beautiful memories they have with loved ones. This is definitely not healthy and should be address immediately. Don't suffer when you do not have to. 

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