Remember that one time when you were in that awkward phase of life and you felt like everyone had surpassed you and got married and had kids and were all happy and you felt like something was wrong with you because all you had was your cat and frequent reruns of Maid in Manhattan or Boondock Saints and that ever ending promise that you would, in fact, start that diet next week because, dammit, I will NOT let that girl on Instagram make me feel terrible about myself one more second (with her perfect abs and awesome legs…gosh I hate that girl)?
Oh wait? You TOO are still single, watching movies by yourself on Saturday nights and skinny fat? OMG, did we just become best friends?
This is an all too frequent look at the life of us guys and gals who are late 20s-mid 30s wondering WTF happened to all our single, non-child bearing friends and why the heck we are now friendless without a husband/wife to tend to and without a baby on our hip. We have officially been left out of the married/parent club. I have friends that talk to me about this very topic on a weekly basis. It’s an area that we have to talk about because if we didn’t we would be living in silent anxiety, fearful that we are crazy and that we will forever be lonely. Our fear becomes desperation while some of us (myself included) make ourselves feel better by saying we like the single life. Don’t get me wrong, there are times I am THRILLED I am not married…like when I’m watching Jerry Springer, and even MORE thrilled that I don’t have children…especially at the airport. That being said, there are times when I wish I were a wife with 2 kids…with some purpose. Yes, working is purpose, but what is life really all about and what is the ultimate happiness in life? A lot of people says “it’s when I had my children”. While this may be true for them, right now I have a different idea.
For now, I get up, clean, work, eat, watch Walking Dead, hang out with my friends, hang out with my dogs, watch movies by myself on Saturday nights, and stay skinny fat. And to be honest, for the most part, I remain quite content with this lifestyle.
Us single people have a greater calling for now. We are called to do the things that are so much harder or impossible to do with spouses and children. Maybe it’s to join the Peace Corps or the military. Maybe it’s to go back to school or make it big in Hollywood. Now is the time. I have always held the belief that you need to be truly in love with yourself before you can love another. Maybe we have work to do. Maybe there is some subconscious area in our life that needs fulfilling before commitment can happen. Maybe we need to grow up ourselves, before we can raise another. Either way, I do know one thing for myself…that God has a purpose to prosper us, not harm us and to work everything out for good. Whether you trust God or whoever, know that where you are is where you are supposed to be. That the person of your dreams is most likely in the same place in life. That there will always be children that need a parent and that you are worth the wait. You are currently under construction. You are awesome and fearfully made. Go you.
