Dixya Poudel

Valentine's Day has neared, as the world comes to terms with the past year's tragedy. People worldwide are hoping for a change in existing scenario. They will be reconciling in hope of better days. Perhaps we all need to remind ourselves today of our ability to love and heal one another.
We are shaped by love and affection from our very birth. As children, we first come to feel love through our parents and family members. When we are grown-up, we attend schools and colleges where we learn to share affection through friendships. Often we can see young children trying to interpret their feelings and a myriad of emotions.
The familial bond is sacred and it is the basis of our ability to love that permeates our lives in intricate ways. And true love is the one that is the most idolised by the world today. Particularly, romantic love is celebrated by the arts and culture such as movies, music and literature. People sing praises of great love stories such as that of Romeo and Juliet.
Romantic love is a highly talked about subject in the contemporary West and is slowly seeping in the Eastern societies such as Nepal as well. Now in Nepal, young people in love eagerly celebrate Valentine's Day and observe all the festivities that come with this day. Along with such modernisation, the notions of love and marriage too have evolved.
Today, true love is considered to be the highest kind of feeling, one that unites lovers through the maze of complex emotions, feelings and thoughts. The idea of soulmate and one true love is echoed in stories, novels, movies and music. Singers croon about a broken heart. Actors anguish over their love affairs.
All of our contemporary culture is shaped by the notion of the sanctity of true love and the importance of finding it. Even in folklores we have beautiful love stories that withstand all time. The frog turns into a Prince while Cinderella gets her Prince Charming through genuine love. And the readers get happily immersed in the fairy tale stories that keep getting reinvented every now and then.
Valentine's Day, however, can be a sore issue for those who are single. Every heart in display in stores reminds them that they have yet to find the right person to love. Every love song that is propelled through the speakers only makes them feel even more alone. Thus, with each heart that soars with affection, there are countless others that lament with loneliness. And Valentine's Day can be a blaring reminder of what they are missing which makes them feel further inadequate.
It is thus important to remind ourselves that love can come in different forms. All of us will have felt loved, accepted and acknowledged at various moments in our lives. Whether single, taken or crushing, we are all in the pursuit of that feeling that makes us feel truly loved. And it is important to not just find love but also to nurture and protect it in every possible way.