The Glass is Half Full

I shared in an earlier post this month that I was going to speak at my church's youth group about being single.  The night went really well, but one question that kind of really made me think was, "What is the best thing about being single?"  Hmmm...what is the best thing about being single?  Then, this same topic came up with one of my best friends this weekend and so that got me to think about what are the benefits to being single.  I think for so long my desires for marriage clouded my ability to see all the good things about being single.  So, as any good self respecting blogger does, I am putting these conversations to print. 

 

So ladies and gentlemen I present to you my list: Why Being Single Isn't That Horrible!

 

1. Sleeping in! One of the benefits of being single is that unless your alarm is going off for work, as a single person you have the ability to take advantage of the weekends to catch up on your Z's.  Married couples (especially those with children) don't usually have this luxury!  There are no 3 year olds crying mommy or daddy at 3am or even 7am.  So use this time of singlehood to get those healthy 8 hours that may be a thing of the past in the future.  Sleep makes us healthier, wealthier and wiser.  (OK, well at least healthier.)

 

2. No strings attached! Another benefit to being single is that other than a job or school and sporadic family obligations as a single person we have the ability to pick up and go pretty much where we want to go.  Do you want to take a trip to Florida or maybe even Rome? (I am going to both this year!)  Then if you have the money, why not?  Do you want to go walk around a museum or spend the afternoon reading at your favorite bookstore?  As a single person you really don't answer to anyone, nor is anyone depending on you to have dinner waiting when they get home, nor do you have to work around someone else's schedule so why waste this time?  Use it to do all those things you love to do!

 

3. Kick up your feet!  Sometimes when I get home from work, I quickly trade my work clothes for a more comfy replacement, make a sandwich or a cup of soup, and then I cuddle up in my big comfy chair with my favorite sitcom.  I can choose to answer the phone if I want and although it's likely that my clothes are still on the bedroom floor and there are dishes in the sink, that's all OK because it's only going to bother me, no one else.  No one claims that they don't like dinner and no one asks me to get up to do anything.  I also enjoy reading in bed in the morning or catching a few movies on a Sunday. 

 

4. Prove yourself!  One of the things I am most grateful to my time of singleness for is that I have learned to stand on my own two feet.  What I mean is this:  in my 7 years of living on my own I have learned how to reset a fuse, kill a spider, unclog a drain, cook, bake, take care of myself when sick with both a cold and the flu, argue with the cable company, go out to eat by myself, iron, put an anchor into the wall to hang heavy pictures, wax the floor, shovel the snow, and clean the carpet.  This is just a smattering of the skills I've learned, but I've also learned how to be alone, how to trust my instincts, and stretch myself beyond my own skill.  I have met some people in this world that only know how to function as an "us" and in someways have lost the "me" along the way.  I can't wait for the day that I meet my husband, but I am glad to know that I can take on this world as a single woman if I have to.

 

This is probably not the only benefits to being single, and I am sure all of my married friends can come back with a list of benefits to being married, that I would undoubtedly have to agree with them.  Being single isn't all sun and roses, but it also isn't all doomsday either.  When I changed my mindset I realized that while I wait for Mr. Right to come to be, I am much more happy focusing on all the great things about right now and not all the missing parts.  My first post of this blog 6 months ago promised that I was going to take advantage of being single and reflect on my life as a single person.  I am amazed at the changes in my life with this little change of my mindset and new adventures in store. 

 

I guess you can say I now see life in more of a "the glass is half-full" light. How about you?  Is your glass half full or half empty?