Single on Valentine's Day = A Whole Lotta Love to Give

I tried to ignore it. But the more you ignore that two-ton elephant in the corner, the more it stomps around and trumpets sappy Sinatra songs and blows heart-shaped bubbles.

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. If you're single, it's a national holiday to celebrate something you don't have.

Or is it?

Valentine's Day is supposed to be about love. Last I checked, love was not a pair of De Beers blood diamonds, "fresh tropical flowers" from a hothouse in Connecticut, or chocolate lollipop bears too cute to eat without feeling like you're decapitating an endangered species. And it certainly wasn't restricted to couples.

This V-Day, take a minute to call to mind all the other kinds of love you have in your life--the love of parents, children, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, friends, pets. That's a whole lot of love. In fact, if you have that much love, you have way more to celebrate than those poor lovestruck couples who only have each other. And how about that wealth of love you have stored up inside? Why not celebrate that by giving it away to other people?

Dedicate this Valentine's to giving love instead of passively receiving it. Call your family and friends tomorrow and remind them that you love them. Take the time to buy or make a card for everyone you're close to and write a personalized message about how they're special to you. Hand deliver the cards or tuck them into mailboxes. For family and friends who are far away, ecards are a good substitute as long as you add a message in your own words. If there are kids in your family, take them out for ice cream or to the movies.

-Or-

Let V stand for volunteer. There are so many people who could use some love this Valentine's Day. Visit a nursing home and play checkers with the seniors. Help a child learn to read. Deliver a meal to a hungry family. Feed the animals at your local shelter. There are as many ways to get involved as there are people with needs. Follow these links to web sites that can hook you up with nonprofits who need help:

1-800-Volunteer.org
American Red Cross
Big Brothers Big Sisters
Network For Good
United Way
Volunteer.gov
VolunteerMatch
Volunteer Solutions
Volunteers of America
YMCA

Helping others will take your focus off yourself this Valentine's Day and remind you that there are people with much bigger problems than who to take to the movies. When you're picking up trash off the street or handing out blankets to homeless folks, I can guarantee you won't hear any platitudes about love...but you'll be showing some.

What do you plan to do for Valentine's Day?


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