I don't need a boyfriend...I have a Dog

We got our computers updated at work today. Most of you probably don't see this as particularly news worthy; I didn't either. However, given that the technicians who came to UPDATE the computers were male, fairly good looking and my age, my co workers beleived this WAS news worthy.

'They're both cute right?' one said to me

'Yeah. I guess,' I said.

'Do you have a boyfriend?'

'No,' I said

'Well, there you go.'

'The last thing I need right now is a relationship,' I said beleiving that that would end the conversation. It didn't. Indeed, she looked at me as though I had lobsters crawling out of my ears.

'Why?' she asked looking at me with concern, as though worried for my health.

I honestly wasn't quite sure what to say. What do you say when you're single, happy with your life and don't have any particular aversion to men, but just don't WANT one right now? So, I said the first thing that came to my mind:

'I allready have a dog. I don't need a boyfriend,' luckily all my co-workers laughed and that was the end of the entire conversation.

Now, I want to make it clear that I am not comparing men to dogs (not all of them anyway), but I just don't understand why someone, especially a girl, can't be single without something being wrong with her.

I mean,look at all the internet dating sites. Everyone assumes that if you're not in a relationship, you want or need to be in one.

This, I've found, is especially true in the evangelical community. I look my church and realize that most of the classes for young adults are classes for young marieds and singles groups for young people who WANT to be married.

It's enough to make me want to start a protestant nuns for Jesus class because, honestly that's what girls who are over 22 and not married feel like in this community.

It's not that I'm down on marriage either, young marriage is wonderful, it's just not for everyone. Just like I can be perfectly happy on my own without the secular ideal of a boyfriend. This is something I'm really just begining to learn.

See, I've been a hopeless romantic pretty much my entire life. I've had my wedding planned since I was five years old and planed out the qualities of my future husband when I was thirteen. I've dreamed endlessly of a white knight who would come and sweep me off my feet.

But now... all that doesn't seem quite so important anymore. I'm learning more on my own about my Faith, about my family and about myself than I could every have learned if I were tied to someone else. More than that; I feel independant, useful and happy. I have people (and dogs) who love me and I'm young and healthy. I don't see why I have to add one more person into this mix in order to feel completely fullfilled. Nor will settle for something less than God has for me simply because I'm afraid of being alone.

So, in short, yes I am single. Yes, I am happy. No, I do not need you to set me up; nor do I need a bible study to help marry me off.

I'm willing to let God be my husband for a while, thank you very much. If you have a problem with this, you can talk to him. (Or to my Dog, Daisy, who would be very upset if another person took my attention away from her).

I'm not really sure that rant had a point. But thank you for reading it anyway (assuming, of course, that you did).