It was that time of year again: the season bursting with love, pink, public displays of affection, and naked babies with wings carrying sharp objects.  It was the month marked by Valentine’s Day, a time that makes single teenagers start running to the bathroom to throw up or begin pulling a Romilda Vane and trying to slip love potions in the food being eaten by their object of affection.  That infamous day has come and gone, but unfortunately, the period that follows may be a time when students’ self-esteem drop to an all time low and they start doubting their potential and giving up hope on finding true love and happiness.  For all who believe this, listen to my advice and hopefully you will start to see the light at the end of the tunnel and find that you were never really in a tunnel in the first place.

Valentine’s Day may be over, and although it is a shame that it has past, the obvious cannot be ignored: your relationship on Valentine’s Day is the same as any other day.  The fact that single teens are reminded of the fact that they are single causes them to hyperventilate and have vicious thoughts like: “I’m ugly.” “I’m alone.” “No one likes me.”

I would like to begin with saying that the people who decide to celebrate Valentine’s Day in the current fashion clearly do not know its history.  February 14 is the feast day of St. Valentine, a name that represents various martyrs named Valentine that have been sacrificed by society throughout the ages. These martyrs chose to die rather than to deny Christ, and legend has it that one of these martyrs restored the sight and hearing of his jailer’s daughter.  On Valentine’s Day, people should have celebrated the legacies of these brave people who chose to remain faithful to their religion while still displaying love for their enemies. Instead, people throughout the ages have spent all of their time worrying about having a special someone in their lives or freaking out when their special someone forgot to buy them flowers.

Valentine’s Day and the days that follow should represent a time of spreading love to everyone, not just one person, and loving yourself. The word Valentine comes from the Latin root word “valens,” which means worthy, strong, and powerful.  Just because you are single does not mean you are useless or unloved.  Like the martyrs, you have a special place in this world and you are here for a reason.

Even though you may not be in a relationship at the moment, you are not ugly and you are not alone.  Do you realize that humans created the idea of ugliness?  Are you really going to let yourself believe that you are ugly just from a few people’s opinions on what is pretty?  You had better not!  Love yourself, because believe it or not, you are loved and you are exactly who you are supposed to be.  The first step to being beautiful is loving yourself on the inside.  When you like who you are, others will like who you are.  Also, you do not need to be popular to be considered beautiful.  So little is known about the St. Valentine martyrs that historians are not even sure if the name is for one or multiple men!  If you are convinced that no one cares for you or knows you, make the first effort and reach out to others.  If you make others happy you will experience happiness as well.  If you show others you care, you will find that you will not feel so alone and that special person might just realize you are who they have been looking for.

Finally, do not lose hope and stop worrying about never finding love. Take a deep breath, a step back, and look at how much life you have in front of you.  High school is not everyone’s prime. Your time is coming.  You are here in this special community surrounded by people who love and appreciate you for all you contribute to the Naz community, whether you realize it or not.

I leave you with this all my single friends.  Smile. Relax. Stop freaking out. Enjoy your friends, make new friends, and enjoy your high school years as independent and cared for individuals.  Cheer up! You are doing just fine!