At what point do our differences turn into relationship deal-breakers? |
At what point do our differences turn into relationship deal-breakers?
August 9, 2026 — 3:00am
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Long-distance relationships are so wonderful. Giddy with lust and potential, you’re drunk on the idea that only circumstances had prevented you from finding each other, and therefore it must be true love. There’s hardly a more romantic scenario than defying logic to try to make it work: “If it weren’t for this one thing, we’d be perfect for one another!” There are few things more exciting than stepping off a flight and into the arms of a lover holding a bouquet.
I’ve been through this, but at some point the flowers give way to FaceTime and fantasy gives way to reality. There’s one phone call I remember vividly. It was a monotonous check-in at first (“What did you eat for dinner?” “Do you have much on tomorrow?”) but I remember it for the one moment when all the wonderful things I’d imagined and projected onto this man dissipated. Eventually, the veneer wears thin and cracks start to show.
He’d scoffed when I said something about climate change. He doesn’t believe in climate change! My stomach sank. I felt sick. How could I have missed this? Had I been I blinded by yearning for romance? My questions gave way to another question: where is the line that marks the subjects we can disagree about but still get along?
I’d met another person who liked to argue about almost everything. Vegemite.........