Dear Mom & Dad, Thanks For Setting The Marriage Bar Way Too High

Like clockwork every single night, I get a text message from my dad. It’s usually a mix of “I love you” or “I miss you” coupled with a few sentences about being proud of me (awww). But a few weeks ago, his message read:

“Your mom had a busy day today, and she fell asleep on the couch. She’s so beautiful, Linds. She’s been so good to me. I’m a lucky man. You’ll find your lucky man one day, too. Goodnight, daughter.”

Now, before you get misty-eyed (it’s OK, I did, too), know this: my parents’ relationship and their marriage is not typical. It’s one of those stories that people write about—the kind of love that could be made into a movie (after being a best-selling Nicholas Sparks book). Theirs is a marriage that’s more of a goal rather than a standard.

As a 26-year-old living in NYC who’s been single for about three years now, I’m finally starting to see that my parents gave me unhealthy, unrealistic ideas about love. Maybe it’s the reason I’m still single. Maybe it’s not…

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