A lot of you might remember. A lot of you might remember the news reports when they came out or how it almost changed your pick for which college to attend.

A lot of you, though, probably don’t remember that it was a Thursday. You probably don’t remember the anxiousness and excitement built up for the weekend or the sudden confusion when you hopped on the bus only for it to pull over into a parking lot and lock the doors.

You probably don’t remember the knot in your stomach when the bus driver or teacher told you that there had been a shooting at Cole Hall and the loud silence as you and fellow Huskies whom you had never met or hardly ever talked to looked around at each other.

You probably don’t remember the inability to call or text any of your friends and family because the networks were so jammed or the sinking feeling as you heard the number of those shot get higher and higher.

You probably don’t remember the frustration of knowing what was happening on your campus while hearing sirens and seeing news helicopters circling the university or the terrible relief you felt when it was over and you were able to leave wherever you were locked down at.

You probably don’t remember the thousands of students being let out, walking through the campus, past Cole Hall, and knowing that everyone was thinking about the same thing and asking the same questions.

This detailed remembrance isn’t intended to bring back the painful memories, but to remember what it was like when everyone was brought back down to Earth and put on the same page as human beings.

I don’t like to think that it takes a tragedy to get people to remember what’s important, but when everyone is faced with a pain so obvious, it is easier to realize the love that is needed to help each other out.

Whether you were there on campus or you had yet to become a Huskie, everyone should always remember how important that is. To reiterate and drive the point home, it is love, people.

I think we tend to shy away from such mushy feelings because they seem cheesy and leave us vulnerable to other people’s attacks.

What is harder, though? To put up a front and act tough or to open up and be a real person and show people that you actually care?

To me, it takes a constant mentality to live outside of yourself and want nothing more than the best for your fellow man and woman.

So what could be more appropriate than to remember that tragic day by doing what the date was originally intended for and expressing love?

No longer should Valentine’s Day be designated for couples and romance, but as a day to remember how important it is to love in general.

When our minds get clouded with debating politics or religion; when we get so consumed with ourselves and our outward image; when we get so obsessed with pop culture; when we are so concerned about money; when we graduate and some of us go off to work downtown at the Chicago Board of Trade and others are plowing the fields right here in DeKalb; just remember that despite all of the different directions we seem to be going, we are all still moving Forward, Together Forward.