Much to my surprise, at the tender age of 59, I’m in a happy relationship. It’s the soul healing, best friend in an edgy outfit, rock solid, make me life till I cry thing I’ve waited for all my life. I love hanging around with him. Love it that we both love to dress up and hit the city, dress down and hit the beach. That we can talk about world issues or do mash ups that somehow incorporate Mr Ed and America. That we eat the same kind of food. That we can solve our inevitable problems.
The only blip on my love radar is the uncomfortable feeling that, all of a sudden, other people are more comfortable with me. Especially couples. They know what to do with me now. And I didn’t know that they didn’t know what to do with me until I did. They say “I bet Linda and John think this…” or “Linda and John do that…”. They invite me to things much more readily and are much easier with me in our company than they ever were in mine.
It’s as if singledom is the last frontier. I never knew this because I’d been out on that prairie for the last 16 years. I was happy there. And, while I knew that I didn’t get invited to every rodeo and that it was probably because I was single, I really didn’t mind. As I said, I was happy being single and I thought people who didn’t know what to do with single people where some strange creatures I didn’t understand. I still think that. But not all single people don’t mind being left out. It can be painful and humiliating and compound the feelings they have about being single when they never expected to be.
The next time you are planning something and are worried about the spare wheel, don’t be. Spare wheels are at least useful. They might just be the thing you need most at your party. And if not, the universe (or whatever else you believe in) will see you do a good thing and maybe even smile on you.
Linda's Life Garage 