For nearly two decades, Sheryl Lee Ralph and her husband, Pennsylvania state Sen. Vincent Hughes, have lived apart, which the actress says works very well for them.
The "Abbott Elementary" star opened up about the couple's nontraditional living arrangement in a new interview with People, published Wednesday.
Ralph and Hughes married back in July 2005, about four years after Ralph and her ex-husband Eric Maurice, with whom she shares two children, divorced.
"You fall in love with somebody and you realize he's not leaving his career. He's not leaving Philadelphia. I'm not leaving Hollywood," Ralph said.
But the couple hasn't let their physical distance impact their relationship and are parents to a blended family of four.
"Every two weeks we saw each other, and it has continued to work out well," Ralph explained. "When I go to see him, I love to see him. When it's time to leave, 'Bye-bye. See you soon.' I'm telling you, life is good."
"He has his own life. I have my own life. He has his own real career, I have my own real career. He has his light to stand in, I have my light to stand in," she added. "He is not looking at me thinking about status or this or that. He's doing his thing. I get to do my thing."
Ralph said when it comes to her personal relationships, she's learned over the years to discuss issues when they come up, instead of letting them fester.
"I've evolved into [saying], 'Let's talk about it,'" she said. "If you sit in problems, you get anxious, depressed, and all the juiciness in life starts to dry up. I can't have that, because all of that will mess with my good looks!"
