Jana Duggar, despite all the exciting courtships involving her siblings in recent months, and years,, is still hard at work for her family.
Yes, with Jill, Jessa, Jinger married and Joy-Anna Duggar courting, everyone is moving on … except the eldest daughter of the family.
If you watch Counting On online or follow the family’s comings and goings on social media, you’ve most likely drawn this exact conclusion:
Jana works hard so her sisters don’t have to.
That is pretty much accepted fact at this stage. But it begs the question of just how voluntary this all is, and the motivations behind it:
Is the soon-to-be 27-year-old (she and twin John David are the second oldest of Jim Bob and Michelle’s 19 kids, after Josh) upset about it?
Outwardly, at least, she seems very happy.
Whether she’s chaperoning birthday parties, putting up Christmas decorations around the house, or fixing shower heads, she’s all smiles.
Because she commits herself to behind-the-scenes work, Jana is seldom (relatively, at least) featured on her family’s social media.
Still, there are exceptions to this rule.
Before Jill shared photos of stillborn Jubilee, the family was seen celebrating their 19th surviving child Josie-Brooklyn’s seventh birthday.
“Happy late birthday post, Josie (even though you don’t have Facebook)!” the Duggars wrote on Facebook, along with the pic above.
“Every day we see you continue to grow into such a wonderful and sweet young lady with a loving heart,” they added.
“Everyone had a fun time celebrating Josie’s 7th birthday at our local bowling alley and going out for ice cream afterwards!”
Front and center was Jana.
This is a recurring theme: Jana only gets a mention when she is hard at work – around the house or outside of the house, but always for others.
She also appeared in photo fixing a shower head with a friend (above), showing off her many talents that her family puts to good use.
Are they doing so at the expense of her personal life, though?
Accounts vary, with some sources claiming Jim Bob won’t let her court, implicitly or explicitly, because he needs her to take care of the kids.
Other sources say the right one simply hasn’t come along. Yet.
In 2015 it was reported that Jana turned down Zach Bates, who really wanted to go to the next level, after “secret chaperoned dates.”
She hasn’t named names herself, but did recently reveal this:
“There have been different guys who have come along and asked, but they haven’t been, I don’t know, the right one.”
“It can be tempting, like, ‘Oh, I really want to be married."”
“Because in those moments, your siblings that are married and have little ones are going on dates and doing their thing.”
“It’s like this weird in-between stage,” Jana reflects. “I’m not a younger one, but I’m not an older, married one with kids.”
The latest Duggar to start courting is Joy-Anna, who recently entered into a relationship with Austin Forsyth, a family friend for years.
Jana … is still doing her thing, as she has for years.
Despite constant speculation surrounding her life – which even included unfounded Jana Duggar lesbian rumors – she seems content.
One can assume, and hope, that when the time is right, our girl will find someone to spend her life with, and that we shouldn’t worry.
Given that she appears to be the sweetest, most wonderful human being ever created – not to mention gorgeous – she’ll have options.
Whether she takes them, hopefully, is up to her!
