Thoughts on Feb. 14

My friend Carrie wrote a really good piece on Valentine's Day. She makes the point that telling people you love them isn't something that should only occur on one day out of the year because Hallmark tells us to. She specifically says:

It's all well and good to have someone special in your life, but just because you don't doesn't mean you're any less of a human being.

I couldn't agree more. You see my friends this might come as a surprise to some of you but this year I no longer have a valentine. Hopefully y'all can read between the lines. But I was feeling fine about it all until I got this in my email:



This is an email coupon from Borders. The subject line read "Coupon Hits Mark -- Will Cupid?" so I assumed that there would be some kind of Valentine's Day savings involved. It wasn't until I scrolled down and looked further that I kind of got a little offended. Loves me, loves me not? Our favorite picks for the stung at heart? "Things I've Learned From Women Who Have Dumped Me"?

Warning: rant ahead. Proceed at your own risk.

Is this what I'm relegated to now? I can't help but feel like I've been shoved in a category that I don't even want to be in. I'm not stung at heart. I don't need to blast Alanis Morisette while I read self-improvement books that basically tell me that love can go f itself. Apparently I can only be one of two things: I'm either in love... or I'm not. My life is either perfect or completely miserable because I don't have a "special someone" right now.

Well let me tell you something Borders coupon. I don't have one "special someone" -- I have about 25 special someones. First of all, I have a mom and a dad and a brother and a sister. My brother lets me call him crying at 1 in the morning. My sister tells me every day that she carries me in her heart. My dad texts me smiley faces with sunglasses and plays "Please, Please Me" by the Beatles on his harmonica because he knows that's my all-time favorite Beatles song. My mom is the best listener and my biggest fan. Those are my special someones.

Furthermore, I have my friends. I have people who will mail me gifts and cards out of nowhere just because they felt like it. I have friends who will take time from their vacation in Hawaii to call me when they know I've been having a rough day. I have friends who will give me sweats and a cup of tea and let me sleep in their guest bed on a Tuesday. I have friends who will just hug me for no reason at all. I have friends who will open up their home to me when I visit from out of town. These are more of my special someones.

And you know what? I'm meeting new special someones all the time and I'm reconnecting with old special someones too.

So Borders coupon, no I don't have my "perfect match" this Valentine's Day. But don't assume that I'm jaded or jilted or anti-love just because some things didn't go according to plan. I love love. I love loving people and having people who love me. And I think that is something to celebrate.