Valentine's Day

The posts on facebook are flowing in from all directions.  "I hate Valentine's Day", "Happy Single Awarness Day", "I don't understand why people only celebrate their love on this one day."  Well, I have some thoughts.   When I was a little girl, my dad always made Valentine's a special day for my siblings and I.  We would come home to a small present and eat our favorite foods for dinner.  Desert was an ice cream cake from DQ.  In high school, while my dad was still working hard to make it special, I would tell everyone I hated Valentine's Day.  Secretly, I loved the holiday.  The hearts, the pink & red, the flowers - not so much the boxes of chocolate with that gross coconut center - but you catch the drift.  There was something about it that just made me happy.
At 16, when I finally had my first boyfriend, and we were going to spend our first Valentine's Day together, he dumped me.  On Valentine's Day.  I was heart broken.  Still, I made the most of it.  I bought myself my favorite candy.  I flew to Arizona to visit my grandparents.  I exchanged Valentine's with them.  I sang songs about girl power instead of love songs.
At 18 I finally had another boyfriend (yea - I was shy, and was waiting for one guy to realize I existed - ha!).  Our first Valentine's came up and he wanted to buy me an engagement ring.  He had asked months earlier, but I didn't have a ring.  We went to Kay Jewelers.  He showed the guy a coupon and I tried on the ring.  I asked him how it looked and he got mad at me for asking and walked out.  I bought the ring myself (I  know, I know).  Happy Valentine's Day, right?  Ok - so that time it kinda sucked, but it wasn't the day's fault.  It was the guy's fault for being an ass.
At 21, same sorta thing, my 3rd boyfriend ever ditched me on Valentines day to hang with his buddies.  By that time I had learned to cope.  I took myself out to a movie, ate all the chocolate I wanted, had a  quiet dinner alone, and ended the night with a nice bubble bath and a glass of wine.  It was years before I had someone to share that day with again, and I learned that as long as I have love for me, I already have a Valentine.
There's something very calming about going to dinner and a movie alone.  Yea, haters gonna hate.  You get some dirty looks and strangers might come up to you and tell you they're sorry - umm, ok - but really, it is what you make it.

Today is the 5th Valentine's Day I have spent with the father of my child, the love of my life, and my [someday] husband.  Each year he cooks me my favorite meal, buys me a new wine to try, and surprises me with a rose. We always spend it at home.  The point is that we are together and we are making time for us as a couple - which isn't always easy once you have a baby!  The thing is, that aside from the "For My Valentine" sticker on the rose vase and the increased price on - well, everything - it is no different from any other random day we choose to share a token of our love.
The point is, that where there is love, there is a Valentine.  Everyone has one if they only look inside.