By By Martini Amour

Does it pay to be in a serious relationship in college or is it better to explore romantic possibilities by keeping all options open?

I love dating and refuse to ever settle for something long-term if it’s not blatantly obvious. The way I see it, we’re here for four years, so why tie yourself down at all?

I used to think this way until I met someone who changed all my views. He was the one person who I should have taken seriously and with whom I could have had a meaningful relationship, regardless of being in college or not. However, I was so focused on keeping my options open that I forgot why I wanted to remain single.

The reason I bring this up, is because more and more I hear girls and guys on this campus gushing about how they desperately need a relationship. It spans all age levels, freshmen to seniors, who are so fixated on finding a significant other they direct all their energy into making it happen. Why do we work so hard to force relationships together?

“I think it’s important to have boyfriends in college,” Alyson, 18, said. “Because you need to explore your possibilities with different guys in different atmospheres.”

But is it necessary to have the full-blown relationship to discover these possibilities? I, personally, have learned more from casual relations than from the actual boyfriends I have had in the past three years.

I agree that it is important to always be intrigued and always have potential opportunities that tease your interest.

However, going out to the bar every night with the intention of finding that special someone to live happily ever after with, isn’t the best idea. Instead, go out to have fun with your friends and meet new people. A lot of love seekers come home after a night out of not having met someone and usually get depressed. Then they end up over-analyzing their situation. Do not think that a night is a failure because you didn’t hook up or get any numbers.

On a different note, people stay in college romances because of the need of a title. I have witnessed relationships where people fight about where they’re going out for the night, or become upset over a mysterious member of the opposite sex writing on their loved ones’ Facebook wall. Is it really that serious? Continually searching for a college romance or continually pasting one together that is obviously broken can equally hinder college life.

I spent my fair share of time wanting a relationship, we all do. But I learned one of the best lessons when I woke up one day and realized that I cannot make a puzzle fit if the pieces aren’t there. And I am alright with that, I’m 21 and still want to be swept off my feet, but I need to live for myself right now.

I love the dates and the intrigues. I live for that stuff, but I try never to think beyond tomorrow. It comes when you least expect it, like it did with me, and I was too preoccupied with my own agenda to realize it.

Don’t be with someone who you had to manipulate into dating you, or with whom you put forth so much more effort than they do with you. Go out, be yourself and if it’s meant to happen, then it will.