Mara Vaț, 11D
Although it feels as if 2023 has just started, we’ve come to realize we are almost entering March. With that, I hope you have all positively begun the new year.
As most of you know, Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14th. It originated as a Christian feast day honouring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, through later folk traditions, became a significant cultural, religious, and commercial celebration of romance and love in many regions of the world. Due to this wonderful day in February, lovers worldwide come together and celebrate with ridiculous amounts of expensive chocolate, teddy bears out of flowers, and baby Cupid jokes. But why is this seemingly ordinary and capitalist holiday a bad one, you may ask? Well, this is why:
1) People shouldn’t need a holiday to show love.
If you’re only doing something to make your significant other happy once every February, you’re doing something wrong. Healthy relationships take much more work than some flowers and a once-a-year candy box.
2) It’s ‘’couples only’’ for no reason.
Being single has undeniable perks, but the world seems to forget that during this time of year. Anyone not in a relationship has to choose between feeling bummed out about their single status or getting flack about feeling confident being alone. Why can’t we celebrate love without slamming the solitude of others? You can love other things: your family, dog or a specific person. Why make it romantic when we can also celebrate platonic love?
3) It turns relationships into competitions.
Everyone wants it to always convey the message that their life is perfect to those around them. Holidays like this one turn acts of affection into games of jealousy as couples see that their gifts to each other don’t live up to what John surprised Jamie with this year.
4) Candy is waaaay overpriced.
There’s nearly nothing we, single folks, want more during this time than a giant bag of our favourite candy, but every store you can possibly turn to has candy prices soaring through the roof! On the bright side, at least there are tons of good deals by the time the 15th rolls around.
5) It fuels the demon of capitalism.
Okay, that statement may be a little harsh, but it shouldn’t take a grand, money-filled gesture to show someone how much you love them. Valentine’s Day has commercialized our expectations of love well past what we should consider normal.
6) All the good restaurants are full of too many lovers.
If you want to go out with some friends or your family, you better make those reservations weeks in advance. There’s no time for last-minute plans if you want to find the best spot to watch the stars with your lover, having a conventional glass of champagne.
7) Along with candy, flowers are overpriced.
We are strong advocates of buying yourself flowers. Treat yourself and show yourself a little appreciation (especially in a time of demonizing single people). But really, $15 for a half dozen roses that will die in a few days? In this economy? We have college to pay for. So it is safe to say we can better preserve this act of love through something more timeless.
8) There are way too many obnoxious, overly affectionate couples.
If you think PDA on the regular is bad, just wait ‘til you witness Valentine’s Day in a high school. You turn one corner, and you see Suzie flirting with Ryan. Turn another one, and you get stuck behind the couple that holds hands, taking up the whole hallway.
9) There are also tons of ooey-gooey social media posts.
Again, we’re advocates of appreciating your significant other, but a post on Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat with a hundred heart emojis is a bit much. But nevertheless, you do you.
10) Pink and red are overrated.
Who decided pink and red would be good colours for Valentine’s Day? Everyone knows complementary colours look better together. Why couldn’t it be orange and blue? Or purple and yellow? The possibilities were endless, and we chose pink and red!? We can easily change that too.
And, for number 11, whatever this day might represent, showing love to one another or yourself should be normalized as an everyday thing, not something deemed for 24 hours alone. Love is and will always be a complicated feeling nobody can 100% describe or dedicate an entire day to. We should take that opportunity to have more time for ourselves and not be shamed by this idealistic theme of “being in love”.
In the end, I hope everyone will spend their February as they want and, all in all…keep reading, folks!!
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