$10 Hallmark Cards, 6 Designer Chocolates That Taste Like Soap and A lot of Lonely People…Must Be Valentine’s Day!

     

            After taking down my Christmas tree and exhausting all of my creative juices into figuring out a way to eat up all our turkey dinner leftovers, I decided to see what after-holiday sales I could find. To my surprise, Christmas decorations were being put away and in their place were Valentine’s Day novelties. This was, mind you, eight days after Christmas and they were already stocking the shelves with cartoon character inspired love letters for five year olds and chalky conversation hearts! It hit me then and there that Valentine’s Day has become overly commercialized by stores, twisted into a day just for couples, and completely foreign as to what the true meaning is: love. Just because the stores feel the need to sell balloons for an arm and a leg doesn’t mean you have to empty your wallet and fill their paychecks to show your love.

           Originating in the Roman Empire, Valentine’s Day was initially the day to remember the priest St. Valentine, who gave his own life in order to keep others’ love alive. There are no limits to love. Whether it’s your grandma, best friend, or the guy who walks your dog, Valentine’s Day was meant to be a day to tell those people how much you care. However, not many people know that. One person admitted, “Honestly, I don’t know why we celebrate it. All I know is that if I don’t show up at home with a dozen of my wife’s favorite flower and a box of three chocolates for ten dollars, someone is definitely sleeping on the couch for a while!” It’s not meant to be a day to expect expensive gifts or to spend your life savings on your sweetie. Valentine’s Day is a day dedicated to love, and “love conquers all,” as the saying goes, so it deserves something a little more meaningful than the associations of paper hearts and cream filled chocolates.

          Besides the true meaning of this “lovely” holiday being seemingly lost, society has seemed to come to the misconception that Valentine’s Day is only for couples. In reality, it is for every single person in your life who you couldn’t live without. Just because you’re single doesn’t mean you have to sit at home alone Valentine’s night and cry into a bucket of mint chocolate chip ice-cream while watching depressing love sagas. This year, go out with some friends, spend some quality time with family, or even show yourself some love and have a “me” day.

         What’s the next issue this day of love gets plagued by? Money. `Ah yes, around this time, the stores out there seem to make it their mission to give your wallet a heart attack when it sees the price tag. In fact, Valentine’s Day has become so commercialized, it is among the top money making holidays in the U.S, according to the Associated Press. Now I don’t know about you, but receiving a five dollar box of chocolates or a twenty dollar bouquet of roses is not the number one way to get my heart doing back flips in my chest. I think that many people have become so absorbed with utilizing the over-priced goods that the stores put out while we’re still on our Christmas break that it takes away from the thoughtfulness of the holiday. Whether it’s store-bought or homemade, Valentine’s Day gifts should be a symbol of your compassion. The bottom line is: it’s the thought that counts.

       So this year when you flip your calendar over to February and see the, for some, dreaded number fourteen, think back and remember the real reason why we celebrate it. Valentine’s Day was never meant to be a day just for couples, nor should it cause you to go into debt. It’s a day devoted to love and when it’s all said and done, that’s all that should really matter.

BY: CANDACE BOEHM