Love Letters

"We’ve been together for five years and I keep explaining that marriage before 30 gives you time as a married couple before having kids well before 35.

My significant other understands that women have a biological countdown to have kids, but he thinks we’re rushing into things. Should I accept his opinion and consider forsaking the grace period after marriage? Or should I try to change his mind?"

Comment your thoughts below, and read the full letter: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/dating/is-it-ok-to-get-engaged-before-youre-30/

As the spring season starts to settle in, it might be time to evaluate your relationships and get the answers you're seeking.

Stop by our Tell-A-Booth at the Boston Public Library to leave a message for Meredith Goldstein, advice columnist and host of Love Letters.

Share your thoughts, questions, and anything else you want. We welcome it all.

Read more about the Tell-A-Booth: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/love-letters/2026/02/12/love-letters-tell-a-booth/

"I’m best friends with my ex. It’s been two years since we broke up. ... My ex and I keep returning to the topic of 'Are we spending too much time together?,' but both of us care about each other, live alone now, and we just keep calling each other and spending time.

I would like to spend less time with her, but I also feel obligated, in a way, to spend time with her. Part of it is guilt around wanting to nurture the dog, and part of it is guilt about my ex being alone and her struggles with depression and the aftermath of childhood trauma."

Read the letter: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/break-ups/we-broke-up-but-share-a-dog-and-a-friendship/

"After 15 loving years, my now-fiancé proposed in December. A few weeks later, we found out he has an aortic aneurysm. More appointments and tests to come. It could be fatal, it could be surgery and a long recovery, it could be wait and see for a while.

We’re getting married in May. How do we stay focused on being present and connected and excited rather than sad and scared?"

Comment your thoughts below and read Meredith's response: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/marriage/i-want-us-to-be-able-to-enjoy-getting-married/

"I’m from England. My husband and I are currently living in the US.

How can I embrace the love I have for my husband, and how we’re building our lives together, without feeling like I am sacrificing my family?

Sometimes I feel like my family sees the situation as me choosing my husband over them. That’s kind of the truth, but how can I love both my husband and my family while obviously staying in close proximity to my husband?"

This Love Letter came from our Tell-A-Booth at the Boston Public Library. Read the full letter: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/marriage/i-feel-like-ive-chosen-husband-over-family/

GIVEAWAY: Want a pair of free tickets to a special early screening of Zendaya and Robert Pattinson’s “The Drama”?

Send your anonymous relationship question to Love Letters by Friday at 11 a.m. EST to enter. The screening will take place on Sunday, March 29, in Somerville.

Enter now: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/movies/2026/03/24/giveaway-the-drama-movie-screening/

18+. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. To enter, send a relationship question to the Love Letters column—anything that’s on your mind—between Tuesday, March 24, 2026 at 10 a.m. EST and Friday, March 27, 2026 at 11 a.m. EST. See Official Rules at https://www.boston.com/official-rules/ for additional information.

Thank you for the hundreds of messages on the Love Letters Tell-A-Booth!

If you have not yet gone, head over to the Boston Public Library, and leave us a voicemail about dating, breakups, friendship, divorce, crushes, family, marriage, and anything else you want to talk about.

Feel free to ramble about your relationship quandaries — and we will do our best to address it in our column.

Read more: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/love-letters/2026/02/12/love-letters-tell-a-booth/

"My sister thinks that my boyfriend doesn’t value me after I told her we decided we would get a lab-grown engagement ring.

I don’t consider myself materialistic at all. My boyfriend and I are both artists, and I would much rather spend my money on experiences rather than nice items. We are aligned on this.

This conversation has continued to be an awkward one for us. It came to a head a few weeks ago when she drunkenly told me that she’s concerned that my boyfriend doesn’t “value” me. If he did, she said, he would insist on getting me a “real” diamond."

Read the full letter: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/marriage/does-a-lab-grown-diamond-mean-he-loves-me-less/

It's been a busy month for Love Letters!

To name a few big moments, Meredith Goldstein ...
🎙️ Appeared on WGBH
💕 Hosted a matchmaking event in collaboration with B-Side and WBUR CitySpace (with 60+ attendees!)
☎️ Launched the Tell-A-Booth at the Boston Public Library

Thank you for all your support for Love Letters! Read the column on Boston.com or listen to our latest podcast episodes wherever you listen.

For those still looking for last-minute date ideas with your friends or significant others, here are things to do to celebrate your loved ones this weekend.

See the full list: https://www.boston.com/things-to-do/things-to-do/2026/02/11/valentines-day-date-free-ideas-2026/

We're giving away 10 pairs of tickets to a special advance screening of the upcoming Focus Features film “Midwinter Break“ on Thursday, Feb. 19, at 7 p.m. at AMC Boston Common.

Based on the 2017 novel of the same name by Bernard MacLaverty, the film follows a couple’s trip to Amsterdam that stirs up memories of the past.

For a chance to win a pair of tickets for this screening, send a letter to Love Letters: https://www.boston.com/love-letters/love-letters/2026/02/11/midwinter-break-movie-giveaway/

18+. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. To enter, send a letter to Love Letters by 11:59 PM EST, February 17, 2026. Ask any relationship question that’s on your mind about single life, dating fatigue, when to say “I love you,” complicated friendships, and marriage and divorce. See Official Rules for additional information.