Leaving for university for the summer

[seventhterrace]

This summer I have the chance to go to university in a different city, but this is causing problems with my girlfriend. I was supposed to go next summer, but my academic advisor strong suggests I go now, because the courses I need may not be offered next year and I need them to graduate. She was supposed to come with me next summer, and already has a job here for this summer, so I don't think it's right to ask her to come with me. But just mentioning that she didn't have to come made her feel like I didn't want her to come with me. Now I'm starting to think that maybe I would like to go alone.
I love her very much and want to be with her for years to come, but I feel that maybe it would do us some good to be apart. I love every day life with her, but I just wonder if bringing her with me will just cause more problems, uprooting her from a very nice apartment with our two cats to live in a small (hopefully private) place close to the other universities campus.
I don't know what to do. I love spending time with her, and would love to spend to summer with her, so much so that I don't even really believe I'm thinking of going alone. But at the same time I feel that maybe this is something I should do alone. Last summer she moved in with me and gave up working at a rural lake for a receptionist job in the city, I just feel that if I make her leave what's comfortable again then I'm taking advantage of her. She doesn't like change... But I do, I like living in new places...but she find's it scary.

I don't know what to do. I think that spending the summer apart is what's best, but it would be so hard being without her. But at least that way she would still live somewhere comfortable, with our cats, keeping her job, and I would visit every other weekend for a couple of nights.

Is that the right thing to do? If so, how do I bring it up to her?

[vashti]

It's only for the summer. You should definitely go, and she should continue on with her life. You can keep in touch with skype and the phone, with occassional visits if they can be squeezed in.

when it comes up in conversation again, just ask her who will take care of the cats.