When I was a young girl there was a widely held belief that women had to be married. If a girl got to be twenty without at least a steady boyfriend with honorable intentions then she was an old maid, a spinster, left on the shelf. This was considered a tragedy and people felt sorry for the poor thing and, I suspect, other 'married women' felt a little smug and superior. It never seemed to cross any ones mind that singledom may have been the choice of the woman and that it wasn't foisted on her because she 'couldn't catch a man'.
Personally, I have come to the conclusion that many married women would have been far better off if they had caught the flu instead of the man they agreed to live with forever. I look at the husbands of some of my friends and I see their girth increasing as they sit in front of the TV drinking beer. The only conversation between some of them is "Bring another coldie!" to which she normally replies, "What? Your arms painted on? Get it yourself." before going back to her latest women's magazine. Yep, marital bliss.
I have recently realised that the thinking of society has not changed very much. Whenever I meet new people the first thing I am usually asked is "What does your husband do". It is automatically assumed I am married. If I happen to be with a male friend he is frequently referred to as "Your husband".
Some women, like myself, enjoy their independence. They don't want, or need a partner to make them feel 'normal' or 'complete'. I am not like Elizabeth Taylor, and I'm not talking about my looks or my body. For me, a relationship with a man is not the first step in the journey to "I do" and a lifetime of never having the toilet seat put down.
I have absolutely no inclination to give up my freedom , my independence and half my possessions to subscribe to the beliefs of other people. For me life is great just the way it is. What about you?
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