I got married young—age 24 to be precise. In a couple of weeks, we'll raise a glass to toast year 12 of our time spent as husband and wife. But it might have never been if we didn't spend a little time apart. Not that we broke up—but we did spend a summer in different states. By the end of that summer, after substituting e-mail for touch—we realized that distance had indeed made out hearts grow fonder.
And sometimes I feel the same way with blogs I read regularly. Those who leave blogging for a while only to come back to it with a passion make me realize how much I missed it while it was gone. Some choose to get others to fill in for them while they are gone (it's not the same thing). Nothing wrong with this—but there's something about a favorite blog that goes away—only to come back bigger and better that makes me realize how much I appreciated it in the first place.
No one can replace the personal brand of you. If it's valuable—we'll come back with stronger feelings than ever. If it was a relationship of convenience, chances are we'll forget about each other and find something else to fill the void. Distance can make the heart grow fonder—or it can end the relationship. Either way, it's a road-test on a street named loyalty. And that's a two-way road to everywhere.
