With the Hallmark holiday of Valentine’s Day just around the corner, the word “love” gets a lot of play right now.

I’ve been single for more Valentine’s Days than not, and even when I was in a long-term relationship, my boyfriend was always traveling alone in some far-off country during this time.

It can kind of suck if you let yourself go there. Those that have been single know these thoughts:

“It’s a stupid, made-up holiday anyway.”

“I don’t believe in Valentine’s Day; I believe in love and friendship and gratitude.”

“I tell people I love them every day; this one day does not make any difference.”

True.

Yet when your roommate comes home with chocolate, your girls talk about where their men are taking them and your colleague gets roses delivered to the office…well, it can be a bit depressing.

What to do?

As a yoga teacher who happens to have taught on the past two Valentine’s Days and will again on this one, I make it special for those that do show up.

We focus on love.

We place emphasis on the love that is in our lives, which can easily be overlooked when it’s not in the form of a relationship. We often tend to look at ourselves negatively if we are not in a partnership, and feel despondent about it. Yet, at the same time, we have the energy and time to cultivate amazing friendships with others, our families and ourselves. That’s love.

We set intention.

What do we really want? Is it to be in a perfect relationship with the man or woman of our dreams? Or is it to simply be happy, understood, content, open and ready to be blown away by all of the things we can’t even imagine? By taking the time to focus our energy on what we want to feel and have in our lives, we take the first steps to getting it.  This is a powerful intention.

We pray.

When a group of people get together for a purpose greater than themselves, to open themselves up to spirit, it’s prayer. We are conditioned to think of prayer as something religious and “churchy,” but, essentially, it is speaking what is in your own heart and sending it out to the God of your own understanding. There’s no need for it to be a group chant or mass speech—it can be just a small whisper from you to the beyond.

We create our own ritual that recognizes love in all of its forms.

Rather than wallow in our own self-pity and watch bad 80s movies alone, we come together—single, beautiful and full of self-love and creativity.

We take this day to see the light in ourselves and to really appreciate what that is.

Someday soon, if we choose, we can share the light with someone else, but first we must recognize it as our own.

So, this Valentine’s Day, give yourself a gift of self-indulgence through movement, intention and prayer. And then go out and buy yourself flowers and chocolate, share wine with friends and toast to love and to your very own beautiful and special light.

Amie Mignatti is an Austin, Texas taco-eating native, now spreading her love throughout Germany and the Alps. She can be found in caves, forests, mountaintops and igloos practicing yoga and delighting in the natural world around her. Read more at www.adventurebyamie.wordpress.com.

 

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