It’s the fall season and you know what that means — it’s cuffing season. Actually, I have no idea why the fall season is considered cuffing season. I guess it makes sense; people want to settle down with someone for the holiday season. You can go to pumpkin patches, bake, watch movies, cuddle up — wow — just writing that made me feel so alone. Anyway, the point is that people apparently find love under the gloomy November and December skies. But I’ve seen no evidence of this. Maybe it’s just my circle, but people are breaking up left and right and I have a theory as to why.
I think the pandemic put so much on hold, especially relationships. The hard-hitting cruelties of our new reality made us want to cling to the people we loved most, and for most students, staying home last year only made this worse. People could sustain their long-distance relationships because they weren’t long-distance anymore. High school sweethearts could stay together because they hadn’t yet met the hundreds of new and exciting people at their universities.
To put it simply, all of our lives stopped. The natural trajectory of growing up and outgrowing relationships halted. Now we are deep into this 2021-22 school year and all the things that should’ve happened last year seem to be happening now. The long-distance relationships are failing, the high school sweethearts are feeling the growing pains and people are deciding to work on themselves.
It’s a painful time for all of us. Maybe you’re in a relationship that you want to get out of, or you’re not in a relationship and constantly see other people in one. Or maybe you’re in the middle of a breakup or have just broken up. Or worst of all, maybe you’re still stuck on that one person that you just can’t get over.
Regardless, as I grow up, I realize the complexities of relationships. Boyfriends and girlfriends seem like a wonderful fantasy that only existed in high school. Now, it’s “we’re exclusively hooking up,” “we don’t put a label on it,” “we’re just seeing how it goes” or “I don’t really know what it is, but it’s fun.” Like, I’m sorry, but do you see your face when that special person calls or texts you? Come on people.
Maybe it was the Mercury retrograde that caused so much turmoil in our love lives. But to be honest, it feels like Mercury is always in retrograde. Whatever the cause may be, people seem to be getting beat up out there, walking around with broken hearts. Trust me, I know the pain. It’s a difficult thing to go through on top of school, your health and social life. So, to all those broken hearts — stay safe out there, time heals all.
