Mawwage is what bwings us togeva today.

Mawwage. Mawwage is what bwings us together today. Wove, twue wove...
So tweasure your woves forever...
-The Princess Bride

Its that time of year, graduation and engagement - and not necessarily in that order.  Two couples I'm friends with are recently engaged - like in the last week engaged.  I'm very happy for both.  I've even been asked to be in the wedding for one - and I accepted happily and excitedly.   I'm even doing the engagement photos for the latter couple (the one we went to Montana with)!  I'm so excited for these folks, but I'm also experiencing other conflicting emotions.

Here they are, happy and newly engaged, and here I am, single for the first time since I realized boys could be more than friends.  Its weird to be doing something strikingly different from my cohorts for the first time - but that's how life will be from here on, I reckon.  We're not all in school with similar schedules anymore.  Its real world for us, with so many choices to choose from (i.e. continue education, get a job, get married + get job/continue education, have a baby, go to Peace Corps, travel the world, be a climbing bum for a year or two).  Its my choice - this single thing, sure, but its mostly due to the fact that my relationship of 4 years would be difficult to continue with half of it living in Colorado.  We'll be lucky to see one another twice a year at best, so, being realists we decided to call it quits on good terms realizing that jump-starting careers is the best thing right now in this troubled economy if we ever want to find stability later in life (barring the world doesn't really end in December).

Frankly, I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around this "alone" concept.  But I'm excited about it, even if it does freak me the flip out.  Its going to suck at first, I'm a major fan of companionship, but this is something I need to do because I need to know who I am better and know that I can be cool and content on my own.  Time to build some character.  (I love this video.)