Dear Kristi,

I met a really great guy on a vacation recently. We had a blast together and I felt a genuine connection. I thought maybe it would end up just being one of those vacation flings that everyone has, but we still keep in touch and I feel like there is something real there. I know it takes a lot of hard work for a long distance relationship to work, and nine times out of 10 they don’t work at all. How can I actually make this work out for us?

— Far Away

Dear Far,

A relationship is a difficult task in itself, let alone one where you don’t get to see your significant other very often.

You can make it work. It will take a lot of effort and patience on both of your parts. You’ll have to accept the fact that you can’t see each other every day and make the time you do spend together that much more memorable.

You will get frustrated, and sad, and want to give up at times, but if it’s really worth it to you and him, it will work.

On the upside, not being together every single day will cut down on the two of you getting annoyed with each other from spending too much time together. And if it works out, when the time is right, you can see each other whenever you want.

— Kristi