Young and single. And loving it.
Well, it's almost February and you all know what that means... You guessed it, Valentines Day. For some, it's the day you get dressed up and throughout the day express your affection for the one you love. For me, however, it's just a day where I get to celebrate the joy and gift of love in general. Lately on Facebook, I have come face to face with this endearing season unfolding in the lives of so many of my friends with the constant notifications of ring by Spring. Friends here and there have all been bitten by some ravenous love bug, and I've some how dodged that bullet.
Coming to a small Christian school where the ratio of guys to girls is 1:4, I feel as though my generation here on campus has gotten stuck in the rut of thinking that they need to find the one in their four years here at University. Not saying that for some this might not be true, but there is definitely a huge pressure for girls my age to beat the ratio and find a college sweetheart to wife them up.
I've had my share of this "love bug fever". I was definitely not the quietest person about my silly little crushes, but it wasn't until my sophomore year that I got bit by this bug. My sophomore year I began my first serious relationship with a boy I went to school with. Being the girl that most my age are, I was certain I was going to marry this kid. Turns out, we broke up almost a year into our relationship and I can now say I'm glad it didn't work out. Not because he was some awful person (because he truly wasn't), but because I realized that the time I spent being young and single were the times I grew the most and had the best experiences.
Although the time after we had broken up was by no means easy and came with a lot of shame about my singleness, I really learned so much. The year I became a single girl again, I was a Resident Assistant for 31 completely incredible girls. It was a life giving position that needed all my time and energy that wouldn't have worked if I had still pursued the relationship with the boy I once loved. Instead, it was the year I learned to love myself first. God definitely had his hand in the situation and showed me through my heartbreak that there was a much greater plan for my own personal growth.
I was recently talking to my boss about this. She told me that soaking up my 20's and all the different aspects that go into that is incredibly important. Call me crazy, but this is the point in my life where I am choosing to be selfish. I'm choosing to buy spontaneous plane tickets to New York, I'm choosing to finally apply for that silly job I've always wanted, and I'm choosing to spend my nights with good friends who make me laugh. I'm not sure about you, but that sounds a heck of a lot more enjoyable than seeking after boys who are thrilled with the fact that an approximate 4 other girls are interested in them. Although it's fun to have silly crushes and have googly-eyes over the long-haired bad boy in the Caf, when it comes down to it, I am so incredibly content being single. And I have no shame about it.
So I guess my point is this: this Valentines season I'm choosing to be content with my singleness. Being in college is such a narrow and thin slice of the greater plan that God has for you. I'm learning so much about myself and the people I truly care for. I get to pursue my dreams and let others pursue theirs. So if you're reading this, single, engaged, married, or in a relationship, take time this month for yourself and don't forget about the greater plan.
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