– C.S. Lewis
Someone I love once told me, “Gosh, you really love love, don’t you?” At the time, I was a little startled by that statement because I felt like I was rather cynical about the whole thing. I was coming out of a time in my life where I was disillusioned about romantic love and relationships – I felt better off being alone. I didn’t want to base my happiness or my worth on my value to another person. But upon further reflection on that statement, I realized that yes, I really do love love. I adore it. Everything about it moves me, and even though I have gone through periods where I’ve striven against it, I am still a hopeless romantic.
I think that it’s easy for a lot of people to feel pessimistic today and have an anti-Valentine’s kind of attitude. I get that. Today I said to someone that it was such a nice day for Valentine’s Day (the sun was shining, the sky was clear blue) and he said, “What? Valentine’s Day sucks” (don’t worry, I protested and said it was wonderful). But here’s the thing about hating Valentine’s Day – even if you have been hurt, if your heart is currently broken, or if good love hasn’t found you yet, that’s no reason to bash this holiday or to be grumpy about it. Be delighted with the loved ones that you do have in your life and worry less about romantic love if it’s just not working out for you right now. Spread some love of your own… Because “in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make” (thank you, Paul McCartney).
For those of you who do have a special someone, don’t miss a single opportunity to express your affection. I have been so happy today just seeing all the sweet things people did for each other; I always admire people who aren’t afraid to show how they feel (have I mentioned how much I ADORE when people give each other flowers? It’s the nicest gesture ever). I think you should indulge in expressing your love to your significant other every day of the year, not just today! I really believe that you can never say “I love you” too much. Life is too short to not appreciate every moment you have together.
And for all you single people out there, don’t fret! We choose our own happiness, and you can choose to be happy today even if you are flying solo. Love finds us all eventually, so rejoice in what the future holds for you. If you’ve lost love, remember you are not alone – and if you’ve never been in love, don’t worry, you aren’t alone either! It will happen eventually, when the time is right. Also, ladies, if you are going to watch some rom-coms tonight, please do yourself a favor and watch He’s Just Not That Into You. This movie is seriously one of my unassuming favorites because it is SO RIGHT about so many things:
“Every movie we see, every story we’re told implores us to wait for it, the third act twist, the unexpected declaration of love, the exception to the rule. But sometimes we’re so focused on finding our happy ending we don’t learn how to read the signs. How to tell from the ones who want us and the ones who don’t, the ones who will stay and the ones who will leave. And maybe a happy ending doesn’t include a guy, maybe… it’s you, on your own, picking up the pieces and starting over, freeing yourself up for something better in the future. Maybe the happy ending is just… moving on. Or maybe the happy ending is this, knowing after all the unreturned phone calls, broken-hearts, through the blunders and misread signals, through all the pain and embarrassment you never gave up hope.” – Gigi
“If a guy doesn’t call you, he doesn’t want to call you.” – Alex
And my personal favorite:
“So trust me when I say if a guy is treating you like he doesn’t give a shit, he genuinely doesn’t give a shit.
No exceptions.” – Alex
Self-respect, people. It’s important. Remember what you’re worth, and don’t let yourself be mistreated, no matter how head-over-heels you are. Just because someone says they care doesn’t mean it’s true if they don’t demonstrate their words with actions. If somebody really cares about you, their actions will show it. And sure, being alone may not be the greatest feeling in the world, but hey – waiting for good, true love is worth it.
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