Today, February 14, is Valentine’s Day. Some people see it as a day to celebrate love and companionship. Others, still scarred from good relationships turned sour or bitter from years of loneliness, see it as a day of shame that casts their solitary lifestyle in their face. Still others see it for what it is: yet another celebration of consumerism, forcing us to prove our amorous intentions by emptying our wallets on cards, trinkets, flowers, and a plethora of other material stuff.

This year I’ve decided I’m not going to fall into the Valentine’s Day trap. I’m single on Valentine’s Day again. So what? I’ve spent many a 14th of February wallowing in self-pity; enough of them to know that feeling sorry for myself doesn’t fill the void that our culture says a twenty-something bachelor should have on this day of the year. If you’re single, take this day to count your lucky stars that you’re not attached to someone that puts stock in such a hollow holiday.

You might be theorizing at this point that I’m just another bitter Valentine’s Day nay-sayer. Last year you would have been absolutely right. In fact had Valentine’s Day occured just a few days ago, there still would have been a little substance to that claim, but not today. There is a girl out there that I love, and I know she loves me right back. You’d think, since I found out just a few days ago that she’s now spoken for by another man, that I’d be angry, bitter, and hating every moment of this holiday. I’m not though. Sometimes love means letting go. Sometimes it means letting the one you love be happy without you. And sometimes it means accepting the fact that life has dealt you a shit hand and its not within your power to change it. We’ve all heard this saying: God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the Courage to change those things I can, and the Wisdom to know the difference.

I’ve never been a believer in fate, and yet I’ve always chosen to believe that there is one perfect match for me in this world: a woman made just for me and me for her. If I have the power to affect change in other aspects of my life, why be a fatalist when it comes to romance? There may be a million women out there that could make me happy (and me them). I just want one. That would be nice.

So as I said: I’m not buying in to the usual Valentine’s Day bunk today. I’m not buying anyone anything, I’m not celebrating my love for anyone nor am I reveling in my own misery either. Instead I’ve recognized that there is still a possibility for love in my life, and that alone is worth a small celebration. Fellow singles, I leave you with the immportal words of Neil Diamond:

Don’t know that I will
But until I can find me
A girl who’ll stay
And won’t play games behind me
I’ll be what I am
A solitary man
Solitary man