“I met my husband online. We were friends through a social network. When we started talking on the phone, we had this connection. We didn’t struggle for words. It felt natural.

“This went on for about three months. Then I was like, ‘I’m going to come visit you.’ So I booked a trip to Houston, and we got married the week I was there. I was young, barely 19. I was just living for the moment, and it felt right.

“I was kind of fearless back then. I just thought, this is my soulmate. It’s going to last. So we went for it. But when I came back home, everyone thought I was crazy. My grandma was so mad. She was like, ‘I didn’t even get a slice of cake or anything.’

“That first year was kind of rough, waiting for my visa. Sometimes I would come here for a couple weeks, and then he would go over there to see me. With work, it was difficult for him to visit. It was a stressful time because I was just waiting to start a new life in a new country. I’ve been here 10 years now.

“I used to wonder what I would have done if I hadn’t gotten married and had my son so young. Would I have done a lot more in life? Did I miss out on having that time with my girlfriends and everything else? Now, looking back, I think I made the right choice. I’m glad things happened the way they did. I try not to have any regrets.”

— Samantha Rodriguez

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“We met online in 2009 after she randomly added me on Facebook. Although it’s kind of shameful to admit, it was essentially an aesthetic thing. She was hot. We’re all human, you know.

“We physically met in 2012 for the first time. It was a little daunting. You have doubts, wondering whether that person is going to be a 40-year-old trucker or something. Then once you find out they are the same person, you wonder whether the relationship will translate the way it did through a keyboard. Fortunately, for us, it worked.

“I think there are a lot of negative connotations around online dating and online relationships. The way I see it, why should you settle for somebody within the 10-mile radius of where you live when there are 7 billion people on the planet? The Internet is a good tool to cast that net a little bit further. I believe the longer we think that way, the more of a social norm it can become.”

— Xander Roberts

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“We met over the Internet and have been married two years November 17th. I never would have thought I’d meet my future wife online. Back in 2007-2008, she lived in Arizona and I lived here. We knew right away. We met through Myspace and then met for the first time face to face about six months later. I went there for a spring break and then I spent that summer there.”

“I moved here in 2010, and we were married in 2012. Kind of a weird story, I guess. We don’t know anyone else who’s done it. Our friends are like, ‘You met where?’ I guess it just depends on the people involved. We didn’t mind the long-distance relationship, but some people can’t really deal with that. It’s worked out pretty well for us.”

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