Valentine's Day

I have done some amazing things in my life, many of which I doubt I would have been able to do were I married. That being said, being single isn't always as fantastic as it is in the midst of my past experiences. I know people who fret about being single, and especially on Valentine's Day find it easy to dwell on the fact that they're single, and unfortunately it's easy for them to be bitter and angry about being alone. I never want to be one of those people. This Valentine's Day, I've thought about the wonderful people I've had the opportunity to date, and thought I might list some of the things that I appreciated most about past relationships. If you don't want to read a bunch of sappy anecdotes, stop here!

I saw some people walking home from school today carrying giant teddy bears and roses, and remembered the first time I actually had a valentine. My high school boyfriend had his mom bring flowers to him at school so he could give them to me at lunch. I think it was the first time someone other than family had done something so thoughtful for me, and I'll never forget how it made me feel.

If you know me at all, you know I love to dance. A boyfriend and I were driving around town doing errands. He brought a CD he wanted me to listen to. When the second or third song came on, he said "this is a great song to dance to", and skipped it. I was confused, but didn't say anything. A few minutes later, he pulled into the empty parking lot at our church, skipped back to that song, and asked me to dance with him in the parking lot under the stars.

I dated a friend in California one summer when I was home from BYU. After I went back to school, we were talking about how cloudy and rainy it had been the past week in Utah, and how I missed the California sun. The next day, I came home to a huge vase of sunflowers and a note that said "Sending you a little sun to brighten your day".

One spring semester I dated a guy who loved a block and a half from where I lived. We used to walk to and from school together often. I loved sharing an umbrella with him. Even more, I loved it when he kissed me under the umbrella! Lucky for me, it rained a lot that spring.

That same man liked to take me skiing with him-he was a much better skier than I, and constantly encouraged me to try things I might not have been brave enough to try on my own. He was always there to collect my scattered gear when I fell, and called me the cutest snowball he'd ever seen.

While I was in Australia, I dated someone who rode a scooter everywhere (it's very European; doesn't have the same stigma attached there as it does here). One day on my way to school with my roommate, we noticed he was in front of us. We got stopped at a red light. I hopped out of the car, ran up to where he was stopped, and planted a big kiss on him before he even realized who I was. This same person knew me so well that he could tell if something was wrong just from the tone of my voice. Few people in my life are able to do so, and it meant a lot to me that he could.

One of my Texans learned to dance for me, and used to dance with me in his kitchen.

Another one would DVR my favorite show and make me dinner so we could watch together, cuddled up on his couch.

I hope you've enjoyed my walk down memory lane. There have been so many people in my life that I am grateful for, and while things didn't work out with any of the men I mentioned above, they were all great examples to me of what I want. I hope I spoiled them as much as they spoiled me. The man in my future has some big shoes to fill!

Happy Valentine's Day!