“Some people are old at 18 and some are young at 90 … time is a concept that humans created.” ~ Yoko Ono

Years ago, while in college, I had a guy who really liked me. We started out as friends and while I wanted us to remain in the friend zone, he wanted more than the friendship I was offering. I could not get past the age difference. He was six years younger than I was and I couldn’t get past this. I saw him and interacted with him more as a younger brother. I truly could not get past the age difference. I always thought it would be weird dating a younger guy but after that experience, I knew I could not date a younger guy. I also knew I could not date a guy who was five or more years older than me. My friends and I had this argument all the time. A friend of mine whose husband is over a decade older than she is argued that she couldn’t deal with younger guys or guys slightly older than herself as they could not relate well with her and she would not take them seriously. She’s a spit-fire and her husband’s maturity really helps complement them as a couple.

I have a good friend who got married to the love of her life who is four years younger than she is. The age difference was not in the least bit an issue for her until the mum bug bit her two years after they got married. Her husband did not see why they had to start a family so soon because according to him, he was too young to start a family, wanted to travel around some more and wanted to spend more time with her before the kids come. In his defense, they had discussed when to start a family while dating and my friend at that time was willing to wait at least five years after marriage before they would think of having kids. She did squash the mum bug and held on to the original agreement. I know this scenario could as well play out with couples who have a close age gap as well but I think her husband’s age did play a role in this decision.

There are some people who don’t care about the age difference and I admire these people. They are not stuck on numbers but on personality and other characteristics. I guess they agree with Aaliyah when she sang “age ain’t nothing but a number.” To these people I say kudos, good for you, you go tiger! And to those who are stuck on age differences, I stand with you!