There's No Need to Catch Up

“They’re leaving you behind.”

I’ve told this story before, about the woman who told me that my (younger) friends who were getting engaged and married were leaving me behind. I’ll repeat what I said then. That’s a lie. It’s Singles Awareness Day, and I just want to tell all my single people out there that you have not been left behind.

There’s no need to catch up to your married friends, dating friends, or coupled-up friends. There’s no race or competition to the altar or happily ever after. Just like we tell children not to grow up too fast, don’t run away from your single life. Don’t awake love before it’s ready. Don’t rush in and out of seasons because you’ll miss something.

Being single can be great if you allow yourself to love your single life. Here are the top 10 things I love about being single:

1. Easy travel
It’s easier to travel when you don’t have to coordinate different schedules, wait for summer vacation, secure child care, juggle a lot of luggage, or save up for multiple people. It’s the season to enjoy traveling. As I travel, there are definitely vacations I want to take when married and when I have kids. Some destinations are geared for romance and others for families. It can feel weird to be in those places alone. But I’m taking advantage of traveling now and often.

2. More sleep time.
I have the worst sleeping habit, but I’m not too motivated to change it because I don’t have to wake up based on anybody else’s needs but my own. For this night owl, that’s awesome.

3. More me time.
I’m a big believer of self-care, and I know it’s easier said than done. It’s even harder when you’re taking care of a partner and/or children. I’m not saying single people are less busy, but it’s easier to rearrange our schedules to carve out time for self-care because we only have to worry about our own schedules. That said, me time is very important and I hope you make the time to practice it.

4. More DIY & other goals time
When you’re single, you have more time for DIY projects, hobbies, and pursuing other goals. Or like I said, it’s easier to rearrange your own schedule. It’s easier to carve out the time for these things because you’re not having to balance other people’s schedules. So learn something! In your single life, go for the goals and dreams in your bucket list. Those life achievement items like learning a new language, learning to play a musical instrument, watching a Broadway musical, or going bungee jumping.

You can also easily find the time to volunteer, join a ministry, go on a mission trip, or start a Bible study in your home (or host one). You can carve the time to serve and give back. Go for it!

5. Restaurant autonomy
Eat where you want, what you want, when you want. From experience, I can tell you that single dining at a nice sit-down restaurant can feel weird at first, but you get used to it. Then you can start enjoying higher-end restaurants because you’re only paying for yourself. Or drive outside the city to visit that food truck you’ve had your eye on. Being single is a great time to be a foodie. No need to worry about bigger bills or other people’s food allergies. Get your grub on!

6. Self rewards
Basically hogging all the chocolate to myself 🙂 Rewards are great motivation for people to do something. Employees to meet a deadline. Kids to do chores. Yourself to accomplish a goal. When there are no other people to reward, there’s more for you.

7. No TV remote battles
You can watch all the sappy chick-fliks you want, or the scariest, goriest horrors you can stomach, or every animated film without judgement or interruption. Throw the popcorn at Prince Hans. Nobody’s watching.

8. Budgeting for one
Or in my case, taking my time to learn how to budget because I don’t have a head for math and finances. So it’s like grace budgeting. By the grace of God, He sees me through!

9. Single ride Disney pass
All my single people need to know this! Some rides in Disney parks have single rider lanes, which usually go by faster. You most likely will not end up sitting with your friends, but you still get to enjoy the ride.

10. Not shaving
Not showering. Staying in my PJs all day everyday. By choice 🙂 Basically, enjoying and loving the single life while I can.

Single friends, enjoy this life. Sit in this season a while and learn some things. Instead of trying to catch up to where other people are, catch up on dreams and goals you have. Catch up on getting to know yourself better. Catch up on sleep. Catch up on travel goals, food goals, or lazy days. Don’t miss out on this time. Make the most of it.