Like a pearl at the bottom of the sea, finding another young adult interested in a long-term romantic relationship is a rarity. Although it is rare, it is not impossible to find someone who shares your exact values. In the world we live in today, living a fast, exciting lifestyle that is committed to nothing and no one is highly glorified.
For those of us on the opposite side of the spectrum, we get picked on more for not wanting to live so carelessly in our relationship with some harsh names: prude, conservative, boring and oldfashioned. It can be very disheartening and sometimes make you feel insecure to even voice how you feel to your friends. This is technically a time when you are supposed to be confused about absolutely everything. But for something as precious as a relationship, you know what you want. Sure there are a lot of things that I'm confused about, like whether or not I really like my major or what I want to eat for dinner tonight. But it's OK to not want to jump around from partner to partner.
I've never been in a relationship. Not even when I was in kindergarten. No, I'm not scared, and it wasn't because no one bothered to ask me to be their girlfriend. I take romantic relationships seriously, and it is hard to find someone who understands and respects these aspects and is looking for the same thing. There is a lot of things that go into relationships: trust, loyalty, respect, time, money, sex, and a whole lot of emotions are just a few. And in today's world where almost everything is quick, easy, and at our disposal - people are, too.
Relationships are a lot like a car: If you lease it, everything is fun and exciting for a short period of time until those 24 months are up and they trade you in for the next best thing. Meanwhile, you will never be able to get that all that money and time back. Or you can finance the car, spending that hard-earned money and time into eventually paying it off for a time when you can cherish that car forever and have something to show for it.
College is a fun and exciting time, but it's also an important transitional period that can bring on a lot of stress. Getting involved with one person is already enough of a burden. Just imagine opening a revolving door for multiple people to bring you stress and waste your time, only to disappear and reappear at their convenience. I'd rather have someone reliable and trusted by my side for the long run, instead of getting to know a new boy every week. Some stress you can't control, but this stress you can avoid.
However, some say that you have to kiss a bunch of frogs before you find your prince. So if that means that if I have to wait a little while longer to weed out the bag guys in order to find that person, I'm OK with that. But I'm not afraid to settle down when I find the right person.
Sheetal Tadiparty
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