As much as anyone might complain about Valentine's Day, we are all sappy and corny at one time in our lives, especially in this holiday. As a romance writer, it's one of those days that feel like Christmas Day, even though my real life is extremely boring and my husband is the opposite of me.

I would live happily with little hearts floating around my head, while he's just like Grumpy from the seven dwarfs.

They do say that opposites attract, don't they?

In his defense, he's pretty rad every other day BUT Valentine's Day. I always must plan that date, but that's okay, I know that he plans different stuff and surprises me when I least expect it. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

So, as my repertoire of Valentine's anecdotes is quite boring, I thought it would be nice to ask people around about their favorite Valentine's Day memories, and I'll just say that they swooned me with each and all of them:

sweetdreamer33: "I attended a fraternity Valentine's Day party, but I'd just broken up with my boyfriend. I wasn't sad or anything, in fact, I was relieved, but the news spread fast and most guys were treating me like I was a porcelain doll, dancing with me, giving me sweet treats. I got a lot of roses, too." 

Wow. Those are real friends! I loved this anecdote because it shows what Valentines stands for, friendship, and how no matter how different we are, we take care of each other when they need it most. 

acheairs: "Honestly, I've never celebrated it but each year I make my sons Valentine boxes with their favorite candies with gifts that are personalized to their actual likes. Anyhow, my son Ethan (he's my 15-year-old) a few years ago, decided that both him and his brother should surprise me and return the favor. So, they get my favorite candies and little gifts but they decorate using their personal art and pictures because they know I don't put value on things. I think that was the best surprise."

Seriously. This is the best Valentine gift ever.

MCRomances: "I was in middle school and was bummed out because people would give out roses and I didn't get any. I had my first appointment with an eye doctor later that day and of course my mom told him about it. He immediately took out a bunch of his business cards and handed them to me saying that I needed to give them out to the boys in my school because they were obviously blind. It made my day!"

Awww. This is so freaking cute that it's impossible not to smile!

Georgeharo: "So, two years ago, I wasn't going to go on a Valentine's day date. Instead, I decided to go out to dinner with two of my best friends. We've known each other since middle school, and been pretty close ever since. One of them had just broken up with her boyfriend of two years, so she was in a funk about the Valentine's day deal. The other, my best friend ever since I met her, has never really had much luck in the love department. She was also feeling pretty down. 

Anyway, the three of us went out as friends. We ate chicken wings and just talked for a few hours. My best friend was talking about how she had been feeling so lonely and unwanted. That she felt ugly (which is bullshit because she's gorgeous, but she doesn't believe me when I say it because as her bf I'm "Obligated to say that"). The night went on, and as we talked this waiter came to our table and laid down a rose in front of my friend. We all looked up and asked who was it from. The waiter replied that he wasn't allowed to say until we had paid our bill.
We insisted on paying the bill immediately, but my best friend declined, saying that she wasn't about to cut our night-out short just so she could find out who the mysterious rose-giver was.
A good deal of the time we had left was spent on speculating who out of all the people in the bar had given our friend the rose, and when the time came and we paid the bill, we demanded the waiter to tell us. 

The waiter was this 15 or 16-year-old kid, who went very red when we asked. Then, he nervously confessed that the rose had been from him all along. That he had heard us talking and could not believe that my friend could say things like that about herself. He said that he found her ver beautiful and that any guy would be lucky to be with her. 

My friend was on the verge of tears and completely forgot about how bad she had been feeling.
Safe to say, I made sure to tip generously that night."

I have a serious crush on this waiter. In such a short story, you can see how sweet and compassionate he acted. So freaking cute! 

Thank you everyone who shared a little snippet of your life for this article. You've all reminded us what love and friendship are all about. And you know what? When I was in high school, I always felt pretty down whenever I was dateless on Valentine's Day, and the thing is, you don't need a date on Valentine's Day. There are so many ways to express love and friendship and none of them have to be about an actual relationship.

So, this Valentine's Day, whether you have a date or not, take a moment to appreciate the people around you. I know you're supposed to acknowledge them every year, but sometimes we all need a reminder to actually say it.

Happy Valentine's Day!