It’s been two weeks since that day. The one that you either meet with apathy, disdain, or giddy excitement. President’s Day. Just kidding.
When you’re single, it’s easy to despise February 14th. I did my fair share of bashing, affectionately labeling it “Single Awareness Day” and wearing black in silent protest of the pink and red world I was forced to endure for a day.
Those of you lucky enough (or unlucky, depending on your view) to have a Valentine that day, you may have been frantically searching for a way to celebrate the day in a way that would somehow live up to expectations without draining your savings account.
The day evokes mixed reactions from everyone, but I find that it’s those who are single who struggle with it the most. Just look at the host of articles that crop up each year around that time providing quick tips and encouragement for how to “get through the day.” Now that the noise has died down, I’d like to say something.
You are more than your relational status on Facebook.
Every time I would go home from college or to visit my family, I’d inevitably run in to someone who would imply that my singleness somehow made me incomplete, that it was only a matter of time until my better half would show up and I could really start enjoying life. Well-meaning perhaps, but completely incorrect.
What of the passions that burn deep, of the dreams that each of us holds dear, of the experiences and interests that we can offer to one another? Are we only as interesting as our relationship status?
Being single does not mean you’re limited to living life at less than 100%. Neither does being in a relationship mean that you have somehow arrived, that life will hold more rainbows and butterflies, or that life will finally be all that you dreamed.
Relationships stretch us and challenge us to be better people, and they add a richness to our lives that cannot be imitated on our own. But that is true of any relationship, not just romantic relationship.
Our relationships do not define us.
They help to shape us into the people we are becoming, but as with anything, they are only a facet of who we are. They are not our sole identity. Being a wife is one piece of who I am, but it is not all of me. It adds to my life in a way that singleness never could. But in saying “I Do,” I let go of aspects of my life that can only be lived through being single and unattached.
If you’re single and wishing you were not, may I gently encourage you to stop living in the “What if,” or “Someday when…” and instead go forward and boldly embrace the life you have, take the adventures that are best done when you’re on your own, and pour into those around you the love you desire to give to that special someone. A day may come when you will no longer be single, and I’ll be thrilled for you!
Whether or not that day ever dawns, do not let your singleness define you, hold you back, or keep you from embracing a life full of joy, wonder, and excitement.
For those of us in a relationship, dating, married or somewhere in between, let us be thankful for the gift we have in that other person. Even, and perhaps especially, when their quirks and habits cause us to become frustrated and lose sight of what they add to our lives. It is a frustration many others would love to have.
What are ways you have found (whether still single or now with someone) to embrace life and keep from being defined by your relationship status?