Illustration: Luo Xuan/GT

I was browsing through WeChat the other day when I came across a picture posted on a friend's Moments. It was of a girl standing behind a door, playing peek-a-boo with a cat. She was barefoot and wearing a large T-shirt and hot pants with her hair in a loose ponytail. The way she was dressed made her look quite leisurely. 

The life reflected in the picture is in stark contrast with mine. As a married woman who has just been upgraded to a newbie mummy, I am confined at home to breastfeed and comfort my baby. 

I suddenly realized how much I miss the freedom that came with being single. I could read books till late and get up only when I couldn't bear my hunger any longer. I could do everything based on my own rules, never bothering to concern myself with the feelings of others who live with me under the same roof. As long as I was happy, I could stay home for a whole day. If I was bored, I went to The Place to free my heart.

One of my close friends who got married four years ago also has "single days nostalgia." "There have been so many times that I miss the days when you and I idly walked on the streets. Even that is much more interesting than my current days with my husband," she told me. 

She feels that the longer her marriage lasts, the more she finds out that a woman cannot always count on her husband. Instead of her husband, she buys herself a flower bouquet every week to make herself happy. Sometimes after work, she would create an excuse to stay out longer to avoid going home immediately.

She said the passion has gradually gone stale, and she does not cling to her husband as much as she used to. In contrast, she needs her own time and space.

Nowadays, a lot of people are still single in their late 20s or 30s, and society and their families put a lot of pressure on them about their single status. 

The pressure is so overwhelming that many lose their ability to enjoy life. 

For many of them, it seems that being single means being stuck in a dark and deep well that only a boyfriend or girlfriend can save them from. 

But the fact is that being single and marriage are two equally important phases in one's life. Single people are not meant to suffer, and married people are not happy all the time.

My 29-year-old former roommate complains about how empty she feels, and she worries that she might die alone.

I told her how I regret not enjoying my life when I was single. At that time, I was under a lot of pressure from my family and society and neglected the freedom and happiness that only belong to singletons. 

Marriage comes sooner or later. One should enjoy being single because if you are not busy enjoying it, soon you will be busy regretting it.