In M. Scott Peck's The Road Less Traveled, he said that romantic feelings have been high wired in our brains to make us want to have intimate relationships in order to hoodwink or trap us into marriage, thereby ensuring the propagation of the human species. This makes sense to me. Other than that and once you have seriously thought about it, I don't think it's necessary. At least it's not for everyone, that much I can say.

I think that people need the relationship and in general the rewards show themselves in different ways at different times. Like at first you don't see anything wrong with the other person and they see nothing wrong with you. And eventually you have them around while you get through something difficult. And you talk about things, and surprise each other. I've spent large periods of my life single, and yet I didn't realize it but I was unhappy until I met my girlfriend. It took a while, but I've become quite attached to her and I wouldn't want to be single again.

I think it all depends on what your calling is in life to whatever you think and feel is going to make your life look back as something you did to make you happy or make a difference. For some it's having a family and building one to make it work, some it's businesses "build it and they will come", some it's running off to the woods "be one with nature", what desires we have fills the pocket of emptiness that we think will make life more fulfilling... if only I had this... I would be... If I did this... It's going to make me this... In the end it all starts with an idea and the mere focus of what you set your eyes on your mind starts to create and look for it to happen. Self-control be helpful at this point to process a more smart way of achieving what we really want for ourselves. Sad though most of us are losing the lack of patience to wait for a good thing.