Hallmark Holiday

Another year has gone past, and, again, I did not have a sweetheart to celebrate Valentine’s Day with.  I’m not complaining, though.  I had a very enjoyable Valentine’s with my single friends that involved music and chick flicks.

But Valentine’s Day has caused me reason to think this year.  I have a friend who has been in a serious relationship for months now, and she abhors the idea of Valentine’s Day.  Especially now that she has a boyfriend.

“Why do I need a specific day to tell him how I feel?” she ranted at one group dinner.  Indeed, why must we have one day of the year to tell that special someone how much we care?  Do the other 364 days of the year not matter on the spectrum of love?  That got me thinking.

For everyone who is single, the prospect of Valentine’s Day can be depressing.  There is nobody to spend the most romantic night of the year with, and television commercials are jam packed with advertisements aimed at couples.

For couples, there is a different “threat” to the heart.  Couples feel the need to pull something special out of thin air for their sweethearts.  They feel obligated to make February 14th the most romantic day of the year, and the pressure grows each year.

Why should such a day exist that causes such heartache and stress on singles and couples alike?  Valentine’s Day is supposed to be the epitome of loving relationships that last.  Instead, its turned into a way for companies to make money.  Or maybe it has always been that way.  I’m opting for the latter.  I cannot see Valentine’s Day as anything but a way for card, candy, and flower companies to make money.

Which brings me back to the question my friend asked that dinner.  Why do people need a special day to show their sweetheart how much they care?  I should think the anniversary should be the most romantic day for a couple.  Why should some random day in February represent so much when each day means something different for a couple?  Technically speaking, February 14th is no different from June 23rd or December 1st.  Its just another day in a cycle.  For couples, its another day they managed to survive together.  For singles, its another day of looking and hoping for that right someone to come their way.

For some people, February 14th is not a day for romanticisms.  The bloody tragedy that struck NIU in 2008 left people in shock.  My home neighborhood was effected by one way or another.  NIU is so close to my home that quite a few students graduate high school and go there.  I can immediately think of two “six degrees of separation” to some of the victims.  How are the students who attend NIU supposed to react to the Hallmark holiday on their day of grief?  There is no way to avoid the grief of that event.