And sometimes this professional attachment I have to the business of love is hurtful. Sometimes it makes me feel lonely. Sometimes I laugh at myself when I’m trying on another bridesmaids’ dress or curse myself when I scream at cat-callers that I am married. Because what are you going to do? You’re going to peruse another registry and write another poem and accept that glass of champagne in the kitchen. You’re going to sign that license and be proud that you were a part of something bigger than yourself. And, like me, you’ll go home alone, make dinner alone, sleep alone, and remember that you have a life full of love and mistakes like the next person, but there is still no one to help you take these boots off.

There will always be people that think an individual is incomplete without a partner. And it will always be hard to dismiss all that and say “screw that” if a partner is something you want. Though, as I round the bend to my mid thirties I feel a solace in my independence. And I can tell you with confidence and from experience that if you are a woman who is without a partner by choice or by circumstance, you are still a compassionate, beautiful, effervescent compatriot who can cook a meal and pay the bills and spin a tale just fine. That is a lot to LOVE. Thank you.