Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and love is certainly in the air. Store shelves are overflowing with red, pink and white items to give to that special someone in your life. Many people find themselves overwhelmed by the sense of loneliness a holiday for couples brings or in a relationship feeling intense pressure to live up to all the grand gestures we see in the media.

Valentine’s Day’s effects on singles and new partners are one of the main reasons that many people dread its arrival each year. But February 14 can be so much more than what the media portrays.

Growing up, I was the oldest child of seven. My parents were happily married and deeply in love but, instead of ditching us kids to go out to an expensive dinner or doing something that involved putting us to bed early, they shared this day of love with all of us.

We would spend the day making each other cards, even my dad, who wrote each of us these terrible, cheesy poems, which we always looked forward to and still cherish. My mom, on the other hand, would spend all day in the kitchen making each of us our own, individual heart shaped cake decorated with our name and favorite colors.

With preparations finally completed, we would sit down to a family dinner consisting of pork chops, applesauce and a plethora of treats. At the table we would open up cards, dad would slurp up the jello hearts and we would end it all with our personal cakes.

Because of this effort to make Valentine’s Day a family affair, I grew up appreciating all forms of love — not just romantic couples — and learned the impact that sharing love with others can have on their life.

During my single years, I often received flowers from friends, bought my own sugary treats and always found a way to spend Valentine’s Day with those I cherished in my life.

When I was in my late teens and early twenties and especially feeling that pull of loneliness that Valentine’s Day brings every single woman this time of year, I talked to a friend and we agreed to be each other’s valentines. She gave me flowers, my preferred treat, and I gave her favorite chocolates every year for nearly a decade. This tradition with my friend has carried on even after I was married, because I knew it was important to her to still feel loved.

Now, as an adult with a family of my own, I carry on many of my family’s traditions, especially those personalized individual heart shaped cakes for each of my children, my husband and any friends who may be joining us for dinner that night. I text the people in my life — family and friends alike — who mean the world to me and let them know I love them. I go out of my way to spread kindness that day because you never know if someone you encounter needs to be reminded that they matter and are cared for.

There’s certainly room for the traditional romantic gestures on Valentine’s Day, but before you plan an anti-Valentine’s Day party or bemoan the return of this commercialized holiday, consider other ways you can share love on February 14. Call your mom, text a friend or just smile at those you pass as you walk to class. Life is short, and a day dedicated to love is just a good excuse to say to anyone in your life, “I love you, I care about you and you matter to me.”

With all the hard and scary things in the world, especially these days, I think we could all use a reminder that we are loved, and to share love with those around us.