Sometimes I feel like the odd man out. It seems that everywhere I go people are coupled up. All the kids have father’s in the home, it may not be their birth father, but they have a male presence in their home.
It makes me sad that we don’t have that. It also makes it hard to go places, I’m always the only single person. I’m not sure how that happened, I know lots of single women but it seems that when I see them, it’s because a bunch of us single women get together.
Considering how common single parents are, why does it seem that I’m the only one when I’m with a group of friends? I listen to everyone talk about the things they do as a family or as a couple and feel I have nothing to contribute.
My daughter and I are a family, but not in the traditional sense. As many things that we have in common with those traditional families, there are just as many differences.
One friend is frustrated by her husbands lack of motivation to fix the fence. I listen to her talk about how for the last two years their dogs have been escaping and all I want to say is, why don’t you fix it yourself? She could, but because that isn’t her job in the marriage it never crosses her mind.
Another friend, who is a stay at home mom, talks about how her husbands job interferes with the kids activities, he misses a lot of them and she is frustrated. I just think, his job allows you to stay home with your children.
I can’t relate to their issues and the comments I would make would not be taken well. They don’t want to hear that they should be grateful or to get off their butts and do things themselves, they don’t have to.
The lines are clearly drawn in their lives, he does this, she does that, and it’s not just the women. Men will talk about having to help in the house, or watch the kids while she gets her hair done. Hello, this is your home and these are your children as well.
Sometimes, it makes me grateful for my single status. Maybe that’s why I’m so happy, there is not one to blame, I’m responsible for everything, and I’ve learned to let things go.