In the movie “Mr. Wrong,” the main character, played by Ellen DeGeneres calls Valentine’s Day “the lamest day on a single girl’s calendar.” For many, it is a solemn reminder of what they don’t have. It is sometimes an excuse for well-meaning parents to pressure their single adult children to hurry up and get married. It is a day many mid-singles positively dread.
If you dread Valentine’s Day, we invite you to remember back to your elementary school days when you exchanged cards and little heart candies with messages on them with your friends. When I was a kid, we shared these tokens of affection with our friends of both sexes without any romantic innuendo. As children, Valentine’s Day was a celebration of love between friends—and we loved it!
If you are without a romantic partner this Valentine’s Day, and you would like to mark the day in some way, you can invite a few friends to join you for a Valentine’s Day celebration. Maybe you will even give them cheap Valentine cards and candy hearts with messages on them. You could also just make a special dinner for your kids and think of other out-of-the-ordinary ways to express your love for them.
Others can simply do what I usually did, which was simply to treat Valentine’s Day like any other day. There is nothing sacrilegious about that.
Most of all, though, I really hope that Valentine’s Day fills you with hope instead of dread. I hope it reminds you of the possibilities that are still out there for you. If it is your desire to find someone special, I hope you will think to yourself, “next Valentine’s Day I will celebrate with my special person.” We wouldn’t have a holiday celebrating romantic love if it was out of reach for most people. I believe it is within reach for you. The coming of Valentine’s Day should give you reason for hope that true love is still a possibility for you—rather than serving as an annual marker that your dream has not yet come true. In his recent talk, Lifted Up Upon the Cross, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said:
I know many single adults who yearn for and deserve a loving companion, a wonderful marriage, and a home full of children of their own. No desire could be more righteous, but year after year such good fortune does not yet come.
If this dream has “not yet come,” go forward with faith in Christ, carry your cross, and it will come. “Not yet” does not mean “not ever!” In the meantime, celebrating love in bright hope will bring you happiness.
About the Author
Jeff Teichert, and his wife Cathy Butler Teichert, are the founders of “Love in Later Years,” which ministers to Latter-day Saint single adults seeking peace, healing, and more joyful relationships. They are co-authors of the Amazon bestseller Intentional Courtship: A Mid-Singles Guide to Peace, Progress and Pairing Up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Jeff and Cathy each spent nearly a decade in the mid-singles community and they use that experience to provide counsel and hope to mid-singles and later married couples through written articles, podcasts, and videos. Jeff and Cathy are both Advanced Certified Life Coaches and have university degrees in Family & Human Development. They are the parents of a blended family that includes four handsome sons, one lovely daughter-in-law, and a sweet baby granddaughter.
FEATURED THIS WEEK
Our featured video for singles for this love oriented holiday is Valentine’s – How to Move from Friendzone to Love Affair and our featured Valentine’s podcast is Single Status & Love Month.
Purchase Jeff & Cathy’s book Intentional Courtship:
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Website: http://www.loveinlateryears.com/
Podcast: https://anchor.fm/loveinlateryears
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