Love is all over the place. Love is in the air, it's in the water, and it's in your food. It's hard to find a novel or teen movie these days that doesn't have a romantic subplot. Most older Disney movies have some love interest. With Valentine's Day quickly approaching, you might be looking for a "special someone" to keep you warm on winter nights.

But what if you don't have anyone?

What if you don't want one?

Don't get me wrong, love is great. Being in love can be a wonderful, fulfilling experience, full of adventure. But when did we as a culture decide that in order to be happy, you have to be falling for someone? Of course there's nothing wrong with having or wanting an emotional connection with someone, but you shouldn't need it. There are so many other reasons to be happy. Be happy because of your accomplishments, your school, or your job. You also don't have to be "in love" in order to feel loved. Spend time with your mother, your sister, your best friend, or your pet and you'll realize that someone out there already loves you a lot. Someone out there already has strong feelings for you.

For a so-called "hookup culture", we still seem to focus a lot on romance. It's hard to find a movie or TV show that doesn't have a romantic subplot involved somewhere. Most mainstream magazines include some kind of dating or relationship advice. If someone asks who your crush is and you respond "I don't have one", you might get some confused reaction. That's okay. Just realize that there are plenty of people who already love you. There are plenty of other ways to feel happy. If you know someone and you don't know how you feel about them, that's okay, too. There's never any rush, no matter how old you get. And when someone comes along, just know you're already a full and complete person. You're a complete person and should be treated as such.