Let's get one thing straight: there is NOTHING wrong with getting married young, even though most of our society may think so. I am 21, engaged, and very happy. Marrying young was the norm for the majority of our country's existence, so I don't understand why it suddenly became "wrong" once some people decided they didn't want to get married until they were older. Love and marriage come at all different ages; everyone has their own preferences. I don't judge other peoples' choices on when they get married, so I expect people to respect mine. You can't control when you fall in love, and I consider myself lucky that it happened sooner rather than later. There are many myths about marrying young that I've heard way too often since announcing my engagement, and I think it's time to address them.
1. Getting married young will most likely end in divorce.
Well, let's start with some facts. 50 percent of ALL marriages in the United States end in divorce. Period. So no matter what age I get married, there's a 50/50 chance that it will not work out, no matter what age I am. So if we're going by statistics, the odds aren't exactly good for anyone. Secondly, I guess you could call me old-fashioned, but I do not believe in divorce. I believe in confronting your problems and finding ways to solve them. So the chances are that my marriage, in fact, will not end in divorce.
2. You're too young to know what you really want.
I'm 21 years old and about to get my college degree. I have been actively pursuing my dreams and my career for 4 years and am very close to achieving my goals. I know exactly what I want, and you telling me that I don't know what I want, just makes me angry. Let's go back to the facts again. Millennials have a larger percentage of college graduates than any other generation and are also more likely to pursue additional higher education such as grad school. As a millennial, I believe we are quite the opposite of this myth; we know exactly what we want and will do pretty much anything to achieve it. It's no different when it comes to our pursuit of love and marriage.
3. You're going to miss out on the best years of your life.
Why is there this common misconception that marriage ends your life? Yes, it's the end of your single life, but who cares? There's no more dating, no more wondering when you're going to find "the one", and no more wasting time with douche bags. If the years of being single and partying and dating guys who don't care much about you are the "best years of my life" then you can have them. I'd trade drunken one night stands for being in love any day. Marriage isn't the end of your life, it's the end of one chapter and the beginning of another brand new, beautiful one.
4. Weddings cost too much much money.
Weddings cost what you want them too. There are a lot of unnecessary elements in a wedding that you can eliminate to save thousands. A wedding can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be, it's all up to you (and your bank account). We are old enough to know about finances and how to save money for a wedding. All you have to do is save a little each month until you have enough for the wedding you want. Not a problem and definitely not a reason to not get married.
5. You're not mature enough to know what true love is.
Listen. There is no age limit on love. It is spontaneous and usually hits you out of nowhere. If you spend your time telling people that they don't know what love is based on how old they are, then you are the one who is immature. You don't usually see it coming, but when you know, you know. I love my husband-to-be very much and I can't imagine ever spending my life with anyone else. I don't believe the definition of true love is revealed at a certain age. I believe it is revealed when God decides it's the right time for you, and I was lucky enough for mine to come sooner than expected. So please stop trying to take that away from me.
The world is lacking in the love department and I think that it would be wise to promote love rather than finding reasons to put it down. Marriage is a scary thing to some people, but that doesn't mean everyone has the same fears about marriage as you do. Marriage is not a right that comes with age; there is not a specific time designated for it. It happens whenever love enters your life, and if you're fortunate enough to love at a young age then you should embrace it and be thankful.
Do not be discouraged by the doubts of the loveless.
