This 11yo boy asks me at shul: “Do you have kids?”
Luke: “No.”
Boy: “Are you married?”
Luke: “No.”
Boy: “So you’re single.”
Luke: “Yes.”
Boy: “It’s lame to be single.”
I wasn’t bothered by the kid’s comment. I thought it was superb. I know I’m a freak in Orthodox Judaism, for many reasons including my bachelorhood.
Steve writes: “Single adults have no value in Orthodox Judaism. Is that a surprise for you?”
Every human being has value in God’s eyes, and consequently in the eyes of Orthodox Judaism. Is that a surprise to you?
I remember calling Dennis Prager’s radio show around 1996. He said something to me on air to the effect that if I never married, I should admit I was selfish. I think I responded, “Not necessarily. Life is complicated. Not every guy gets to marry, and it is not always his fault.”
If I hadn’t gotten so sick in my 20s, I probably would have married in my 20s. I emerged from six years of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome at age 27 with about two-thirds of normal health, and I had to limp through life, which is not a formula for getting married.
