As the new year is welcomed, I have started to notice many signs that it has started. Some of the things I have noticed are the red, white, and pink color schemes and heart shaped candies which can only mean one thing: Valentine's Day. Yes, Valentine's Day, the day of love and affection to your significant other and the one day of the year you prove how much you care for him/her. Strangely enough, it was not the color schemes or heart shaped candies that grabbed my attention of this day quickly approaching nor was it the pictures of a fat baby with wings holding a bow and arrow, but instead it was a title for a magazine article.

'10 Tips on How to Get That Special Someone to Love You Back by Valentine's Day.' As a young, single woman waiting at the checkout line in the grocery store, I felt offended and as though I should be ashamed of the fact that I am single on Valentine's Day.

Well, I am not ashamed of being single and if anything I am happier then ever that I am; being single is a choice, my choice.

Although I may be single this Valentine's Day, this was not the case for the past three years. Coming from both views, being in a relationship and also out of a relationship, I can honestly say Valentine's Day is just another day of the year in my opinion. When I was in a relationship, I always thought this day was such a big deal and always felt the need to go all out in order to show how I felt towards the person I loved. But looking back, I see in some ways this day is over rated. Now that doesn't mean I'm opposed to this day of the year and it does not mean I don't believe in love, but that I simply see even the smallest acts can have the biggest impact on a person. You don't have to spend a ton of money and shower someone in gifts to express how you feel toward them.

Since small acts can mean the most to someone, they should be shown everyday and not just on one day of the year dedicated to it. I've also learned that in order to love someone and care for them you have to love yourself first and that's exactly what I am going to do. Instead of showing the small acts of kindness to a significant other, I will remember to show myself the small acts of kindness and I will remember to love myself.

Since Valentine's Day lands on a weekday this year, I am going to spend the day the same way I would spend any other weekday: with my friends. If there is one thing I have learned in life, it is that I do not need one person in my life to make me happy because I am lucky enough to have so many people in my life who I love. Now, they might not be that 'special someone', but they are special to me and I couldn't think of a better way to spend the day.