It's that time of year again: love is in the air.
I think you know what I mean when I say "that time". There's about to be an overwhelming influx of anniversary posts on Instagram, rose bouquets, chocolate covered strawberries, oversized teddy bears, romantic movie marathons on Channel 20... the whole nine yards. Valentine's Day, and its aftermath. You know the drill.
Trust me, we've all pulled an Ebenezer Scrooge on the day of love- rolling our eyes at that couple holding hands on public transportation or gagging at every Hallmark card adorned with "I Love You to the Moon and Back". It can be so incredibly easy to hate the holiday, especially when your plans include going to town on a Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough Core ice cream and rewatching Gilmore Girls for the twelfth time (just an example, not related to personal experience or anything).
But hear me out! I may have a solution to all your lovesick blues. And it's not to say "don't worry, the right person is waiting out there for you!". Instead, all I'm proposing is a slight shift in focus.
Love the little things.
That person who always sends you memes. The friend who smiles at you on your way to class. The employee who gave you extra buffalo chicken in your wrap. Someone who held the door when you were awkwardly far away. Your friend with impeccable music taste, who's always finding songs you've never heard. The person with amazing style that you admire. An old friend who texts you out-of-the-blue. The teacher who took a couple books off the syllabus. Someone who compliments your graphic tee, even though it's wrinkled. The one who gives you their last French fry. Your roommate who buys toilet paper when there's only one roll left- without you asking.
While we are too busy wandering around hoping to stumble into our soulmate, we forget to see the love that's happening all around us. And yet, these little acts of service are the very definition of love- and life- in themselves!
Let's break the stigma and remind ourselves what "love" is all about. Look around you and recognize the acts of kindness hidden beneath familiar faces. Stop condemning yourself for being alone on Valentine's Day... because you're not. Surround yourself with the people who make you smile the other 364 days of the year. There's no better way to see how lovable you are than to step back and observe the ways that people show you.
You. Are. Loved.
Just promise me you won't go watch The Notebook.
