During our teenage years, we are told that love doesn't exist in high school and we should just save our time and effort until we are old enough to "understand." Well I think that's a bunch of bull crap. I think that no one can tell me when my emotions are allowed to make sense or put a time frame on them. I think that I am allowed to be in love during high school and enjoy it and be mature enough to realize that my life won't be over if that relationship doesn't work out. Below are five reasons why I am in love with my relationships despite the fact that I am only a high school senior.

1. My relationship is in it's awkward teenage years just like we are.

Through the high school tears and drama of our small little world we are there to listen to each other's complaints about friend and petty problems that no one else cares about. My boyfriend lets me cry on his shoulder over calculus problems and is still proud of me for getting a C+ on my English test even though I'm convinced the world as we know it as just ended. He lets me do this because he gets it. He is going through or has gone through the same things a short while ago and understands exactly what I'm feeling instead of putting it off as "childish" or "dumb.

2. We have the same pool of friends.

All of us have crossed paths at some point in our lives even before my boyfriend and I got together. Whether I'm watching the big game with the guys or he's making a McDonald's run for my best friends and or we're all out seeing a movie it's never really awkward or boring because none of us have ever been strangers even before we all start being close.

3. We get to watch each other grow as individuals and as a couple.

It's kind of cool to look back at not even just older pictures but to think about all of the memories we've made together so far. I guess that at any age it's good and fun to do that but in the case of a high school relationship we can see ourselves grow at one of the most crucial and memorable times of our lives. To see that we don't need to spend every waking moment together to still have a relationship like we though we used to, or to get in arguments and be able to resolve them without a huge fight. It's amazing to see how much he has changed, how much I have changed, and how different our relationship is because of how much we have grown as people in such a short amount of time.

4. We have the same kind of problems.

All teenage boys and all teenage girls have the same kinds of problems just at varying degrees. Some have have less acne or better hair but we are all worried about the same things in our four years of high school. Having a high school relationship means that both of us are stressed about college applications, work problems, parents, homework, and how our relationship will be with both of us at college. We relate to each other and are able to work it out together because a solution for one of us genuinely affects the other so we need a solution that is in both of our best interests but still allows us to reach our goals at the same time.

5. We have the rest of our lives ahead of us.

Whether or not we end up married and live happily ever after, we will always have the memories of what everyone says are the "best years of their lives". We will get to experience all the typical fun things everyone says that you must in their lives before they settle down into the "real world." But the best part of all is that we will get to do those things together and always have the memories.

Moral of the story is that love doesn't have to wait until we are done with college and ready to work our lives away. It can happen at high school, when you're 42, or 97. Love is everywhere and a beautiful gift given to us to embrace whole-heartedly. Don't let anyone ever tell you that you aren't old enough to understand love. Don't let anyone ever tell you what to feel or when you are allowed to feel it. Love has no time frame, no starting point. Love does what it wants and is one of the most beautiful aspects of our world.