I'm not lonely. They're lonely.

I'm in my early 20's and my parents are worried that I'm single and don't have a boyfriend.<br><br>But I think there's a big misunderstanding here. I'm not lonely because I don't have a boyfriend. They're lonely because their friends' children are all married off already.<br><br>I hate this attitude that just because I'm a girl, I have to be married before I'm 25. They want to boast about how great I am, how beautiful I am, how good a cook I am, etc.<br><br>But I don't want to be that. I want to be strong, independent, and not have to rely on anyone else. I want to be able to say I did it all on my own.<br><br>I'm not lonely. They're lonely.<br><br>Edit : Wow, thank you for the gold! It's my first time receiving it. I'm really happy that this post resonated with so many people here.