It’s that one “special day” of the year where the pressure is on for you to give your best to the person you love whether it be flowers, candy, special dinners and maybe even jewelry – not to mention cards.
While those things are all well and good, they are also an excuse to make someone feel special. You can make any day special without the sense of obligation of spending money or giving gifts. It’s a sort of “Hallmark” holiday if you will as we see retailers use “love” as a means of monetary propaganda.
Much like Christmas, Valentine’s Day, has for centuries been commercialized by numerous western societies, though unlike Christmas, it’s not as closely tied to raw gift-giving for gift-giving’s sake. Chocolates are eaten and flowers die and products are often the cheapest form of affection.
Moreover, Valentine’s Day can encourage comparisons. Those who aren’t in a relationship can feel inadequate, while those in a relationship compare their valentines to others. The pressure to live up to certain expectations, which if not met, can result in you being labeled a “bad” boyfriend, girlfriend or significant other.
However, for most people though, Valentine’s Day is just a great time to celebrate love and kindness. Those two are such great qualities in people, why not have a holiday about them? Sometimes it’s best to take advantage of an opportunity to show compassion.
That doesn’t mean that one good day out of the year gives us an excuse to be bad people until next year. It can even go as far as reminding us that the world still has some love. Despite your beliefs or feelings toward the holiday, it is important to remember that not all relationships have to be romantic. You can celebrate friendships and relationships with family.
It’s easy to dedicate one day of the year to certain feelings and habits and Valentine’s Day is such a day for romance. To many people, Valentine’s Day is the day where you can make the person you are with feel loved and a reason to make that day special. While this day does allow for small gestures of love and kindness often taken for granted to shine, everyone should remember that ANY day can be made special. Don’t wait for a holiday centered on it to take advantage of that.
Sincerely,
The staff of the Schoolcraft Connection