Some people truly hate Valentine’s Day, thinking it’s a sorry excuse to get away with not doing extravagant, kind and heartfelt things for your loved ones throughout the year. Personally, I think Valentine’s Day is a cute idea and should still be celebrated, but only while keeping a few things in mind.
At this time of year, store’s shelves are beginning to be stocked with heart-shaped candy, pink and red are in every corner of public spaces, flowers and roses are planted more, and the constant reminder that you must buy something for your significant other by Feb. 14 is hard to escape.
Plenty of people think this holiday shouldn’t be a thing anymore because of this flashy reminder to buy things and the fact that it’s heavily reliant on consumerist capitalism. Yes, the accessories, decorations and dinner plans are all very expensive and can leave people feeling bad if they can’t buy as much as they want for their partner on Valentine’s Day. However, we can get away from this negativity as long as we remember Valentine’s Day is not about physical gift-giving, but about showing affection and tenderness.
Just spending time with someone you love is enough to celebrate the holiday. Friends, family, coworkers and colleagues may feel obligated to get you something on this holiday, but reminding them tangible things don’t define relationships is another way to try and remove the cynical feelings people have towards Valentine’s Day.
If more people agreed on a “no-gift” rule where no one in a friend group or relationship spends money on a gift, Valentine’s Day would be appreciated more. That way no one feels compelled to follow the common “rules” that created this negative image of Valentine’s Day. It would be seen as a day where you can acknowledge and show your love rather than a day to spend money.
Some cheap and fun ways to spend time with loved ones can be an at-home movie night, a walk in the park, watching the sunset or even baking someone’s favorite dessert. Say you wanted to give a gift to a parent or best friend but don’t have the funds. You could send a sweet text with virtual flowers to show you are making an effort and thinking about your loved one.
With the world and our lives moving so fast as college students, not everyone has the time to get presents for their loved ones as often as they may like. Valentine’s Day presents the opportunity to have a designated day to go all out for the person you love, whether it is platonic or romantic.
This is all fine, but we have to remember just because there is a national holiday dedicated to showing love and affection, doesn’t mean that on other days of the year you can forsake your loved one. Valentine’s Day should not be used as an excuse to never put in the effort needed to show love and appreciation on a daily basis. Many more people would enjoy this holiday and come to appreciate it if they see it as a simple day to remind one of love, rather than the one day a year to show love.
Another important thing to remember is Valentine’s Day is not exclusive to people in romantic relationships. It’s inevitable that single people feel like they can’t celebrate this holiday, but steering away from this with cute spin-offs like “Galentine’s Day” is a sweet way for those who are single to still celebrate love. We can use this day to remind us of love, but also to remind us that other types of love like friendship and family love are just as important as romantic love.
Even as a young kid in elementary school I remember getting Valentine’s Day candy from all of my classmates. We were being taught at a young age to appreciate different kinds of love, so why don’t we just keep that same mindset?
I’m sure anyone would be happy about receiving a heartfelt message from someone they love this Valentine’s Day. Simple things are meaningful to people — it shows effort that is important in maintaining any type of healthy relationship and what this holiday should be about.
Valentine’s Day has created high expectations for couples to have the “perfect night,” and relationships can be harmed if it isn’t. But this isn’t even the point of Valentine’s Day. If it is no longer seen as a test of enduring love, then people won’t use it to determine the health of a relationship or as judgment on themselves because they aren’t in one.
Just remember, Valentine’s Day isn’t a trial of a relationship, but purely a celebration of love.
Valentine’s Day can be a wonderful holiday to celebrate with loved ones, as long as we know it’s not an excuse to ignore the needs of your partner throughout the rest of the year and it is about celebrating all types of love. We can change our mindset to see it as an excuse for humans to accept and invite love into our lives. Keeping these key things in mind, this holiday can be collectively enjoyed by reminding ourselves that love is tender and worth celebrating.
