Your Courtship and Marriage professor calls out, “raise your hand if you’re in a relationship.” More than half of the class keeps their hands in their laps, including you. Everyone looks around with embarrassed faces quickly thinking of reasons why they didn’t raise their hands. Laughs are exchanged and you wonder, “Why didn’t I raise my hand?” 

   You are getting older and with that expectations that you figure out what you are going to do with your life are increasing. For some, that includes the prospect of marriage. It seems that most young adults our age are getting married right away after college. Times have changed and that means being single is an acceptable life choice, something that older generations may not completely understand.

  Family gatherings always include a relative asking about who that someone special is. You think Netflix but respond with “I’m too busy”. Naturally getting your life together seems stressful and having a Facebook newsfeed plastered with engagement pictures makes it harder. This stress only adds to your Friday night TV show list. Let’s be honest, being single is great. Netflix is your best friend and your biggest worry is deciding what color of sweatpants to wear. Be honest, you can’t commit to fully getting off your smartphone for longer than an hour, let alone commit to one person. Social media doesn’t always tell the truth about people and you would like to not spend money on anyone else but yourself. Single is the choice of living because you don’t want anyone to know what television shows you actually watch. Self-analyzing for a class assignment is the closest you’ve ever come to talking about your feelings. Snapchats have taken over texting or calling and you are fully committed to your career. Dressing up for going out in public is too much work and because you like your alone time too much. You don’t like sharing or compromising and married couples are gross. 

  It’s a new beginning in society where young adults are more focused on things other than their relationships. Education and careers are becoming more of a priority. Going to a party doesn’t include awkward singles; it now includes awkward couples being the minority. A lot of people you know are single and it is rare to have engagement rings posted for a dream event. Grandmas are starting to slow down on the wedding questions while mothers are accepting your single life. 

  Being single isn’t a bad thing, celebrate it. The fault isn’t being single, it’s an accolade for getting other priorities in line first. Not everyone is like this but if you agree with the reasons, then you are. Show people you can be successful without attachments, you’ve got time.

 

Brianna Arity is majoring early childhood education. She can be reached at [email protected]