With Valentine’s Day coming up, it feels like couple cuteness has ballooned to a new level. Matching pajamas, giant teddy bears, and heart-shaped chocolate boxes are already filling up the holiday section at Target. As a single person, it’s difficult to navigate the constant pressure of feeling like everyone around you has “someone.” However, being alone is a valuable experience that I have grown to appreciate in college.

Coming in as a first-year, there was something in the air that made people cling to each other and not let go. People quickly formed cliques, groupchats, and relationships. I get it — there’s something deeply satisfying about being surrounded on all sides by people you can be comfortable with, especially in a new city full of new faces. Many people began to travel in packs from place to place, always with an arm around a friend or a situationship.

Things moved more slowly for me. My friendships have blossomed and grown one by one. My ecosystem of friends is stable. Although my friendships provide a source of consistent companionship, they don’t offer the comfort of a relationship.

And I have stayed single. At first, it felt like I was missing out. So many of my friends from home came to college and coupled up happily.

Maybe everyone else is growing up, and I’m staying exactly the same.

But in my six months of independence — not loneliness — I’ve found that the exact opposite is true. My loneliest days have been some of the best of my life. I get to feel strange and far away from everyone safe, and I can walk through snow we don’t get at home into a classroom where no one knows my name yet.

I was told by everyone in my life that college is where you learn to be independent. I think we should all, in one way or another, take that to heart.

Although I’m not experiencing big dates, kisses, or PDA on the way to class, I’ve done so much more this semester that I wouldn’t have dreamed of doing in high school. I’ve switched my prescription, written and carried out grocery lists, and taken countless late-night walks through the park. A lot of them have been with friends, but most of them have been alone.

In college, we should be developing all different kinds of love. Explore romantic love, treasure friendships, and, most of all, love yourself. Grow to love spending time with yourself. I’ve spent so long bustling from one thing to the next with a parent, friend, or sibling at all times. Now, the silence of being alone can come around a lot more often.

This Valentine’s season, whether you are in a relationship or not, I challenge you to cherish your independence.