Ring by Spring

“Tying the knot”, “getting hitched”, “taking the plunge”—each of these phrases describes what most couples long to declare to their friends and family: "I’m getting married!" This next step in the journey we call life is an exciting one.  It’s something romantics have dreamed about over time.

Getting married has become more of a casual process in relationships throughout the years. However, some still seek that romance and passion found in previous generations that leads to a lifetime of love and happiness. Many of these individuals are college students in private institutions with a religious influence. It is known that a sizeable amount of these students go to these colleges in order to find their significant other. Several of these young women will say they’re attending to get their MRS (Mrs.) degree (I’ve actually known a few to say so). There’s also a phenomenon known as “Ring by Spring” that has risen out of this desire to meet and fall in love with your other half throughout your college years. “Ring by Spring” is a phrase that signifies the wish for a couple to be engaged by the spring semester of their senior year in college.  I have actually been witness to this happening at my alma mater.  Countless couples have started dating their freshmen or sophomore year and wind up having a wedding after their graduation. My boyfriend has actually been in a few of their weddings, and I have attended a number of them!

It’s admirable that millennials hold these principles in this day and age. The appeal of finding your soulmate at an early age—it’s almost nostalgic.  Looking back at older generations, we find that those couples got married in their teens and early twenties. It was common to marry so young for the Silent Generation and even for some Baby Boomers. A great example of this is my grandparents. My grandfather had just been discharged from World War II in California. My grandmother was living her life in Boston, Massachusetts. How did their paths even cross, you may ask. My grandfather, charmer that he was, actually hitch-hiked his way across the US from California to Boston for a job.  Sometime while he was in Boston, he decided to catch some entertainment at the local dog tracks where he met his future mother-in-law. My great-grandmother took it upon herself to set up her 19 year-old daughter with this handsome, 22 year-old veteran (as that’s what all wonderful mothers do, right?). And that’s all she wrote—my grandparents married less than a year later, had 6 beautiful children, and led a happy life together.

It’s stories like my grandparents’ that are inspiring these students—they are itching to find someone who has the same interests and beliefs. They actively seek out this someone throughout their college career to love and be loved in return. They are ready to face the hard work and commitment found in a relationship that eventually leads to marriage.  They may be in their early twenties (or younger) but love and marriage is valuable and worth finding.

Many couples are meeting, falling in love, and planning their futures together, all before graduating with their degrees. However, this isn’t exclusive to these students. Countless romantics are out there, looking for their other halves, hoping to find a budding romance that leads to a lifetime of love. They could be in their teens. Their twenties. Even their fifties. Ready for that relationship to take the next step. How about you? Are you wanting a “Ring by Spring?"

Writen by Ashley Tumlin