A Little Something I've Just Written...

Currently Listening To :: The Girl From Ipanema :: Bebel Gilberto

Ben, can’t you commit to anything?

These little letters blinked at me on my computer screen as I was busily typing out my other work for this weeks issue of Blitz. Now normally, any types of hazing coming from good friends online is something I normally take in my stride with a smile and a comeback, but this time, it made me sit up and stare.

Commitment. Say it out loud…not too hard you’d think? Perhaps, but some of us have such issues with this concept, it’s not even called commitment anymore, it’s called the “C Word”. While there are so many different contexts in which commitment can be spoken of, the one that springs to most peoples minds is relationships. Now I’ll be the first guy to happily settle down with a girl, BUT, only if I feel she’s someone I can commit to. And therein lies the questions that none of us really want to deal with. Why? Because you’re going to have to start turning the finger back on yourself, and it’s not everyday in which we’re emotionally questioned the way we are mentally and physically.

So let’s begin then…is she worth it? Once the honeymoon period is over, am I willing to put in the effort needed to really make this relationship work? Or simply, am I willing to give up a late night out having fun with the fellas?

To me, the answer all lies in the options you have. As the comedian Chris Rock once said, “a man is basically as faithful as his options”. Which is true, but then we’re all “relatively” mature aren’t we? So it’s really up to us whether we want to keep our options open or shut them down right? Hah! If only things were so black and white…

We’ve been brought up to believe that happiness lies in freedom and independence; the freedom to do what we want, to make our own decisions, our own choices. But things have gotten to the point where we have reached option overload, and suddenly, trying to commit to something has never been harder, whether it be the your partner, your choice of breakfast cereal or the ringtone on your mobile phone.

Now some may take this as just another attempt to rationalise the general lack of commitment from males today; not true. I guess what I’m saying is that no matter what the commitment you are (or aren’t) making, you can’t escape from having to make decisions at some point. Eventually, you’ve just got to decide what’s important to you, and take life from there.

But since I’m a guy, I guess I can only speak from my own perspective, and at this point in time, all I’m saying is that committing to an answer on my ability to commit to something is something I just can’t commit to right now. Why, you ask?

Because I’m just trying to keep my options open right now, you know?