At this age, we feel like we have relationships figured out. Most of us have been involved in everything from friends with benefits to serious relationships at this point, and because of this we tend to be overly confident.
At this age, we are living contradictions for two reasons: we feel the pull in ourselves towards relationships, yet we're still attracted to the hook up/bar scene. It's natural to feel the tug towards the relationship life; at this age 300 years ago we would've been married with kids. This is the age when we start to mature and think seriously about our futures, so it makes sense that you might want a solid relationship in your life. Yet all the while, many of us are entering new college towns, where the want to go out every night and kiss everyone you see is also just as strong. I think this is why girls settle and fall into relationships that never should've been there: we put our expectations in people that were never deserving of them in the first place. Girls also love attention, so it's natural we might push ourselves towards someone who gives us what we want.
I read a book called "Captivating" by John Eldredge a few years ago. In a nutshell, it argued that women were made in the feminine image of God, and that through that we can also learn more about Him. The three points it made were that women want to be seen as captivating and beautiful, they want to be saved from something, and they want to be taken on an adventure. This is why girls chase things like Tinder and why we fall for the trick that is a "dm slide" -- we want to be called beautiful. We say, "It's 2016, women don't need men, I don't need to be called pretty." Yes, those are all true -- but you can't let political correctness blind you from the center of femininity.
So yes, we're 18 and we're young: we chase things we know aren't good for us, we want attention, and we feel a tug towards relationships. Where does this leave us? For me personally, I know I feel all of these things but I cringe at the thought of a boyfriend.
Boyfriends are never a necessity, and you've got to make yourself as big on your own as possible before you allow a boy into your space. I'm not knocking relationships and I'm not cynical -- I just think we're still so young and we don't need to commit ourselves this early. We're all learning and growing every day.
Go Rebs and God bless,
MJS
