By Elaine Cannell, Editor
Coffee? Check. Backpack? Check. Car keys? Car keys? Where are the KEYS? I felt the panic rise in my throat as I chucked my backpack and ran back upstairs to begin a frantic search. I burst through the bedroom door and looked around wildly. I snatched my purse from my dresser, and swore under my breath when it knocked over the picture frame behind it. I picked up the frame and considered flinging it across the room. But after one glance at the photo it contained, I couldn’t help but pause and smile dopily. The frame was a Valentine’s Day gift, and it got me thinking about the holiday.
It’s interesting that the best gift I’ve ever been given isn’t a cheesy teddy bear or diamond earrings. I loved the gift because it was personal-it meant something to me. What day of the year it was when I got it had nothing to do with it. And that’s the way it should be.I’m definitely not about to dive into a cupid-burning, love-hating, anti-relationship, “Hallmark holiday” rant.
I think that Valentine’s Day is a good idea. Who doesn’t like the thought of a holiday celebrating love?
However, I’ve got a beef with what Valentine’s Day has turned into. Many people lose track of what the day of love should really be about.
So what is the true meaning of Valentine’s Day, Charlie Brown?The ridiculous thing is that love can’t be defined by the cost of a dozen roses, or a pair of diamond earrings, or a gigantic stuffed rabbit that says, “some BUNNY loves you,” when you squeeze its ear.
This is a holiday that started as a day to show each other how much we care, and has somehow become, “Dude, you only spent ten bucks on a box of chocolates? Do you even like this girl?”Senior Taylor Andrews agrees that Valentine’s Day should be about more than who can spend the most money.”I feel like Valentine’s Day is all for show. It’s become [a competition] about who can give the best gift,” Andrews said.
And it is a competition-in more ways than one.How many times do we hear guys freaking out about Valentine’s Day? Not only do they have to compete with past boyfriends, they have to outdo what they’ve done in previous years, and even compete with what other guys are doing.On the other end of the spectrum, we have the boys who forget about the holiday, or else couldn’t care less.Generally speaking, boys aren’t the ones who are crossing their fingers for an over the top PDA on Valentine’s Day. Guys aren’t ever going to be the ones complaining to their buddies about their girlfriends only springing for the small bouquet of roses.However, I am not about to stereotype all girls as lovers of the “day of love” either. Some girls would rather just skip over the fourteenth day of February completely. Senior Charlene Steininger is one such girl.”[Valentine’s Day] is a Hallmark holiday. It’s completely overrated,” Steininger said.Many times, Valentine’s day can lead to a major lover’s quarrel. There’s bound to be one person in a relationship who is much more into the holiday than the other. For example, as girls, we tend to expect our boyfriends magically transform into Noah from “The Notebook,” and if there’s no fireworks/hot air balloons/diamond jewelry, we are left disappointed. Putting that kind of pressure on someone isn’t love. Senior Josh Nahley said that he believes that there shouldn’t be any set expectations for relationships.
“It’s nice to show affection,” Nahley said. “But you shouldn’t need a holiday to do that.” Well said, Josh, well said. No matter what that special someone does for Valentine’s Day, whether it’s big or small, we should all keep in mind that it came from the heart (awwwww). More importantly, Valentine’s Day shouldn’t be the only day that we show people how much they mean to us. It’s the little moments, on those regular days that truly mean the most. This mindset applies to everyone, whether in a relationship, trying to win over that cutie from Algebra II, or single and proud of it.
When it comes to anyone in our lives-from best friends to siblings to fiances, no one should ever take on the attitude that there’s only one day a year that we need to say, “I love you.”So go ahead and rent that cheesy movie. Spring for that sappy card. Buy a box of chocolates if you want. Do it on Valentine’s Day-or don’t. Do it next Tuesday. Or Friday night. It doesn’t matter how we do it, and it certainly doesn’t matter if we do it on Feb. 14. All that matters is that we show the ones we love that we love them.
Whether it be a gift, a hug, a kiss, or an “I love you,” the moments mean so much more when they come from the heart-not from the calendar.