Single Is Not A Lower Way Of Life
Changing this thought pattern won’t make you alone forever.
My brain, which at this point is just a small, charming rodent doing its best to pedal a penny-farthing, struggled with a recent professional situation. I’d love nothing more than for the world to flock to my work like they do to the seemingly endless stream of people preparing food on TikTok, but after six years, I’ve learned that my palatability is…unique. I am not an acquired taste, I’m one you simply must be ready for. No one can tell you to reframe the shit parts of your life that are dragging you around, you have to want to. A podcast listener of mine let me know that she shared my work with a friend, but that the friend wouldn’t listen to it. The reason she gave? “I don’t plan to be single that long.” Babe.
I find this phrase heartbreaking. “I don’t plan to be single that long.” It implies so many shameful, scared feelings and forced optimism that’s being used to will oneself into a state of being saved. Saved from the unacceptable life state of being single. There’s so much fear and shame packed into this statement that the person who made it can’t even accept what she is for an hour of auditory entertainment. And who could blame her? Every societal message we receive (apart from my podcast), tells us both directly (urgency messaging from friends and family) and passively (every book, blog…
