So This is Love

Valentine's Day is my third favorite holiday...after Christmas at number one (OF COURSE) and Thanksgiving at a slight number two.

Not because of the chocolates or the decorations or the TV specials, but because of what is stands for. Love.

People around me have probably heard me complain about the fact that, this year, Valentine's Day was on a Saturday. I have to complain because, being the single lady I am, I don't usually have a Valentine to lavish me with all the cutesy stuff other people get on Valentine's. But when I can go to school on Valentine's Day, I get to watch the girls carrying around teddy bears half their own size with bouquets of flowers, and the occasional couple, suddenly thrown back into the innocent blushing-and-crushing state their relationships all started with. It's adorable. :)
Not to mention the amazing treat of having Cloud Nine, our school's boy a Capella group, interrupt the class to preform a second-hand serenade for some girl, purchased by her boyfriend.

Luckily, Cloud Nine still went around on Thursday, and I got to see a few couples and a few gifts on Friday. We even got candy in seminary that I was able to share a bit throughout the day.. but I was still disappointed I'd miss Valentine's Day.

Saturday I wasn't going to be anywhere near couples, actually. I had NATS competition in Chicago, which could have lasted anywhere from 6 minutes to 11 hours. See, the competition is huge and awfully competitive. Soloists like myself prepare three songs, months in advance. We have the choice to meet with our accompanist before the performance. This year, for the first time, I decided to actually use that chance and we had a time set for 9 am with her.

We arrived at Northeast, the college hosting CCNATS about 8:30 to allow for warm-up and sign-in and whatnot. After my rehearsal, we just sat around. I did my nails, Dad watched LOST, and I sang mentally...a lot. My trulife performance was at 11:21, so around 10:45, we headed back to the hallway the performances were in (it was awfully small this year! Usually, CCNATS is on multiple floors or even multiple campus buildings) to warm up again.

The judges give you six minutes to preform. Soloist pick the first song of the repertoire to sing, and the judges then pick the next. Usually, that's all you have time for. My first song, "Du Bist Die Ruh" was my favorite of the three and I feel it shows off my voice best. The other two to pick from included "The Bird" and "Blow, Blow, Thou Winter Wind". "The Bird" is difficult, apparently, but I just thought it was boring. "Blow, Blow," however, is supposed to be easier. It's a Baroque piece, so my voice teacher put ornamentation into the second verse. It was a lovely, fun song, and I get to do some awesome things with my voice singing it. However, because it's boring and easy without ornamentation and there's no rule saying soloists must use ornamentation, the judges picked "The Bird".

After I finished, feeling pretty pleased but definitely not that I did well enough to advance, Dad and I went into Chicago. We got pizza at Gino's East, which was delicious but very time-consuming, and then stopped off at the Apple store and the Disney store. Success eluded us at both places...apparently, you need to get an appointment for customer service with Apple. I enjoyed my walk around the Disney store just fine, but didn't buy anything. Didn't expect to, actually. :P

We were actually late getting back to NATS for results, which was okay because I didn't advance anyway. For those curious, if you're in the top three in your division (split by age) you advance into the next round. The top performers chosen in that round win money and preform at a concert that night.

Later that night there was a multi-stake Dance for Valentine's Day....but I was absolutely bushed! Completely incapable of the energy needed for dances...so to the dismay of my friends, I opted to stay home and rest.

In honor of Valentine's Day, amidst all the hustle of getting Mom ready to fly off to Utah, we watched one of my (since no one else wanted to pick) very favorite romantic movies..."You've Got Mail!". For those of you who haven't seen this movie, you really should. It's silly, but so very sweet, and has a great sense of soul-mate-ness. It also happens to be the first chick-flick I ever saw, seeing as it's rated PG. So maybe I'm biased, but every time I watch it, I get swept off my feet right along with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks.

So, my Valentine's Day wasn't what I expected, or necessarily wanted. I didn't get to see my school mates giggly over each other, I didn't get a fish tank full of pink socks and a DVD I really should be too old for, and I had to spend the majority of it at a competition that, although I promise I really did enjoy, made me tired of singing (blasphemy!) by today. But it seemed perfect in every way that evening.

I love this holiday because it stands for love...the love that holds together high-school sweethearts with little gifts, but also the love that holds together a family for eternity. Yesterday, I got to see my mother's face light up like a young lady in love when she read a card from my father. I got to watch my father pick out that card, the perfect display of flowers, and frosted animal cookies with a determination and giddy excitement that he only gets when he's hoping to surprise the woman who knows him best.

I got to sit on the bed with my parents as we watched a movie about my favorite (in case you haven't noticed) emotion and, even though it wasn't a very productive hour and a half, I could just feel so safe and loved. I got to text my sister in French, who was willing to try her hand at texting in French because she loves me and probably knew it would make me grin like it did. I got to feel so loved and so spoiled.

I have friends who call February 14th "Singles Awareness Day", but I think they're all not just scrooges...but blind. Valentine's Day is about love...not necessarily relationships. I may not have one valentine, a box of chocolates, or a bouquet of roses, but I get to feel just as loved as anyone else...and probably more than some. Sure, it helps that I see other couples walking around and think "oh, how cute!" as opposed to "why not me?", but I really believe that the holiday of love is meant for everyone...taken or not.

"So This is Love" can be found in Cinderella