The Magical Mythical Romantic Partner

Single people, keep this in mind when others try to warn you of what you are supposedly missing

Photo by Miguel Teirlinck on Unsplash

As a lifelong single person and a scholar of single life, I think I’ve heard all the claims about how awesome it is to have a romantic partner. I don’t doubt that some romantic partners are truly wonderful. But I know they are also human. When I hear people going on and on about how great it is to have a romantic partner and feeling sorry for people who don’t, I often wonder if what they have in mind is a real person or what I call the Magical Mythical Romantic Partner.

The magical mythical romantic partner

Here’s how I described that fantasized being on p. 6 of Single at Heart: The Power, Freedom, and Heart-Filling Joy of Single Life:

“. . . the Magical Mythical Romantic Partner. That’s the person who is always kind, always attentive, always around when you need them, and always happy to do their share of the work. That’s the partner who always wants the same kind and amount of sex that you do, at the same time that you do, and who never strays. As a parent, this partner is always present with your children and devoted to them, and the family you have together is free of conflict or cruelty. In later life, the Magical…