I’ve written and re-written this article so many times. I cannot find the right words to express the message I want to convey. It’s a tough one so bear with me while I do my best.

Be independent.

It seems simple and yet it is the most difficult thing for us to do. Society values couples, we are pressured from a young age that we should find a girl or a boy to take to the school dance, that if we went alone it wouldn’t be as fun. We celebrate couples. We love to see celebrities dating, we love to see beautiful people dating other beautiful people and we get so caught up in it all that we forget about the strong independent men and women that are making it just fine on their own.

So be independent.

Being your own person and having your own values makes you appreciate being in a relationship. But it also makes you accept yourself when you are single. Being single is a beautiful thing and allowing that beauty to shine is what will help you find yourself. As cliché as it all is, it’s very true.

Writing for the Odyssey has made me open my eyes to the world around me. I notice everyday things in terms of what I can say about them in my next article however this one didn’t come to me naturally. I was stuck and I realized it was because I struggled relating it to my life.

However, I learned after going away for college allowing myself to grow and be single, then spending six weeks in Europe that being independent is hard but it is necessary for a happy and healthy life. You cannot cling to your significant other like so many people. Being able to stand on your own two feet is what someone is going to love you for one day.

So let them.