Love isn't as simple as Dirty Dancing

It’s 10 pm on a Wednesday and I’m curled up in my bed (that feels like an actual fucking cloud may I add) watching Dirty Dancing; completely envious of the love that the two characters in front of me share. Then something dawned on me. I am 22 years old and I’ve never been in love.

 I sat here for a while, thinking of whether or not I should be sad about this, when I realized that I had done this to myself. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve experienced strong feelings and at some point probably thought I was in “love”, but I definitely have never been “swept off my feet”. [insert eye roll here, its okay, I just told you to do it]. I truly think the majority of us have just fallen in love with the idea of what something could be and have looked past the people that it involves.

 I’ll be the first to admit that I’m probably the most guarded person out there (like my walls are 1000x more effective than the Great Wall) and, like most girls, there is definitely a trend of negative guys in my past. I honestly don’t even know what I would do if an actual nice guy approached me. Wait, scratch that, I do know what I’d do. I’d probably, with an awkward laugh, ask if they were serious. ß Sad, but so very true.

You see, I think love is a very serious thing; I’m sure most of you would agree. But one trend that seems to be more and more evident, especially in our generation, is the constant need for affection but the lack of commitment. Maybe I’m old fashioned, but that just isn’t me. If you have feelings for someone, tell them.  Who knows, maybe they’ll give you the response you’ve been waiting for; and if they don’t then at least you tried. Heartbreak sucks, like really really sucks, but if you never put yourself out there then you’ll never find “your person”.

I’ve realized that its more important to stay true to who you are than change for someone else. Find someone who will encourage you, embrace your weirdness and show you new things. Your twenties are all about finding who you are and who you want to be with. Have a little fun with it.