User blog comment:Eikakou/Anne (2017) episode 6 - Remorse Is the Poison of Life review/@comment-4934571-20170428013127/@comment-4934571-20170501001711

Thank you for your kind words. I guess it depends on the place you live or rather on people around you. I come from a village (c. 1900 residents) and went to primary and high school to a nearby town (c. 35 000 residents). People there are mostly very conservative, traditional, not very forward-thinking. They stick to the one pattern described above (study, get a job, get married, get a house, have a kid) and they don't change that way of life. They are not tolerant – everything different than the correct lifestyle is considered weird. Our region is far from the capital, which is probably the only city with multi-ethnic society. People from my village/town don't know many foreigners or people of colour. They make fun or despise homosexual persons, not to mention other forms of sexuality. Everybody knows everybody and there is constant gossiping.

Right now I am still considered normal in their eyes. However, when some of my acquaintances found out that I've never dated anyone, they were shocked ("Like never never? Really?") and pitied me ("Well... don't worry, you'll meet someone."). I am still very young, so I shouldn't be worried that I haven't met the right one to spend the rest of my life with. But the fact that I still haven't been on a date is some kind of social stigma. It is presented by the sociaty as my personal failure because it is something everyone goes through by their 18. Now it is a bit weird, but they "still have faith in me" and "I am not a lost case". But the older I get, the stranger it will be. And it is really difficult to live under such pressure and to be judged by so many people who know you your whole life. It is just like Ruby mentioned in that GGF episode.

I believe there is nothing wrong with me. And it's not like I don't want to find my significant other. I want to get married and have kids... one day in my future. Not right now. It's just that I am not very lucky. When I deeply cared for someone, I never had the courage to tell him because I was convinced that I wasn't his type – and it wasn't a smart thing to do. The same scenario occurred with three different guys during the past six years. It would be lovely to be in a relationship with someone you love. But only when it's a real back and forth relationship, not for the sake of being-in-a-relationship-because-I-have-to.

To sum up, I am determined to live and enjoy my life and we'll see. I've learned that there are surprising things waiting for you and you find them when you don't expect them.