I know all of you have read the article "Why I Married Young". I love it, so here is my version.
Backstory: The UPS man that is afraid of dogs just came into where I work. He was talking about how he was when he was younger and I said "oh well I am 21." He gave me a concerned look, then back down at my left hand.
"You are getting married aren't you?? At 21?! Are you sure about marriage at 21?"
The answer, I would bet my last dollar on my marriage. Yes, without a single doubt in my mind.
The things is, older married adults look at young marriage as giving away your freedom, jumping into life too soon, not enjoying your younger years.
That is the farthest thing from the truth.
Why I will marry at 21:
I knew I would marry him from the day I met him. (It was actually night but whatever, you get my point) Something struck me as different. Maybe it was the way he kept up with me intellectually or the way he could out-wit me in a heart beat. Maybe it was his smile and those dimples. To be honest, I don't know what made my heart decide to cut back flips when I met him. It just did.
Giving up my freedom would mean I was no longer free. The question remains of what is so great about being single in your 20s. Some people aren't mentally ready for marriage this young, that is perfectly fine. I haven't lost my freedom, instead I am free to do everything I want with a really cute body guard by my side. If i want to go out and have drinks with friends, I can. I most likely will drag him with me because he is more fun than other people, but I can go. Being married doesn't hinder my opportunities. In fact, it broadens the opportunities I do have. If I decide I want to see Nebraska, my husband will pack a bag and we will go. I couldn't do that alone (mainly I suck at driving but I wouldn't go to Nebraska by myself).
"You shouldn't settle down this soon in life." Settle down? What exactly am I settling? You want me to be wild and go out and party. I can still do that. Being married, I don't have those half drunk creeps hit on me in a dimly lit bar. If we go out I have someone to judge everyone else with. (let's get real, we all people watch and judge.)
I get to grow into life with my best friend by my side. I knew him when I was a loud 16 year old. We get to figure out life together
There is less baggage. He is my first and only adult relationship (I classify adult as both parties being 20 or above). All of the milestones of a marriage start and end with us. I haven't shared those moments with anyone except him. We got to move in furniture together into our home. He watched me submit my application for nursing school.
We learned life's hard lessons together as a team. We tackled down payments on a home together. We tackled not having a single pot in said home together. Both of us knew from a young age that life isn't fair but together we had someone to stand beside as life slapped us around a little. Even though I am sure "Life" isn't done slapping us just yet, but we know how to handle it and know how to help each other along the way.
The adult stuff is literally done. We own our home, we have everything thing we need to settle into our lives together. Marrying young isn't giving away my freedom or abandoning my youth. Marrying young is securing your best friend by your side through whatever you may face. It is a guarantee that I will have a hand to hold when the waters get too rough for me to navigate on my own.Young marriage is thrilling, exciting and I couldn't imagine being 21 and doing anything else.
