Believe it or not, I am actually fond of Valentine's Day.
I know what you're thinking: "Of *course* you like it, Chii; you have a boyfriend, and have for years!" Ah, but here's the irony: I have found a love who loathes the VD Juggernaut as much as I detest what is commonly shoved down my throat as "Christmas Spirit" (and trust me, that's quite a bit). Now, I'd be lying if I said I'd never spent a single Valentine's Day in my teens lamenting my lack of Valentine for the day--who hasn't, after all, especially at that age? But having a man whose philosophy on the day is that if he truly loves me, he'll be showing it all the year round, and not just on one particular day, has caused me to sit back and really examine what Valentine's Day is all about, and I think I've got it.
Valentine's Day is about love.
Okay, yes, it's also about card companies and florists and chocolatiers making a shitton of money off of people who think that's what Valentine's Day is all about. For them, it's about money. By that logic, so is Christmas. But the real meaning of Valentine's Day is to celebrate love, and the sad truth is, most people think that the only love there is is the romantic kind. I happen to know for a fact that that is bullcrap. Think about it: You love your parents (provided they're not horrible, sick, twisted, evil human beings). Would you ever *romance* them? No! And that's one of the only things that bothers me about this upcoming day. I have plenty of single friends who, whenever this time of year comes around, find themselves inundated with red and pink and white and hearts and flowers and teddy bears with various expressions of love plastered all over them. Couples seem to come out of the woodwork solely to be gooshy and romantic right in front of the singletons, it seems. Everywhere is the reminder that this is the one day a year you're truly allowed to be romantic in public, and the implications (no matter how unmeant) that you are somehow less worthy, less valued, less important, because you lack an "other half". My single friends, throw that bullcrap on the floor and stomp on it. On this Day of Love, take the time to recognize the love you have in your life, whether it's romantic or not. Let me give you some examples:
Every day, when you come home from work, you call out that you're home. Your pet returns the call, either by running to the door and greeting you or vocalizing some how that they know you have returned now. You spend the evenings alone but for your pet, mostly, and your cat curls on your lap and purrs the moment you sit and provide him with one. Or maybe your dog runs in circles around you, jumps and wags her tail while grinning like a madman at the sight of you. Heck, maybe even your very particular parrot, who only lets you handle them, will sit on your shoulder and nuzzle against you. Your pets love you.
For years, you have known a particular person. You've known each other so long, you think of each other as siblings, or damn near. Perhaps you haven't spoken to them in some time, or you've gone through phases of varying degrees of contact, yet no matter what, whenever you see each other again, things are exactly as they've always been. Somehow you never really lose their friendship or their companionship, and you know that no matter what, you will always have them to rely upon. Your friend loves you.
Those are just some specific examples. People develop fondness and love for many different things. A person can love their job, or their hobby. A person can love a sport, whether they participate in it or just watch it on TV. A person can love their gun, or any kind of weapon. A person can love food, or education, or books... the list goes on. Love is not a solely romantic emotion; it has facets and faces and aspects that can go on forever, always fulfilling a niche somewhere in your needs. You do not need a lover to feel love, and you should remember that any and every day you begin to think that might be true. So this Valentine's Day, take the time to acknowledge the many different loves in your life, no matter what they are or how they've come into your life. It is love, it is a part of you, and it is wonderful. Celebrate it!
I know what you're thinking: "Of *course* you like it, Chii; you have a boyfriend, and have for years!" Ah, but here's the irony: I have found a love who loathes the VD Juggernaut as much as I detest what is commonly shoved down my throat as "Christmas Spirit" (and trust me, that's quite a bit). Now, I'd be lying if I said I'd never spent a single Valentine's Day in my teens lamenting my lack of Valentine for the day--who hasn't, after all, especially at that age? But having a man whose philosophy on the day is that if he truly loves me, he'll be showing it all the year round, and not just on one particular day, has caused me to sit back and really examine what Valentine's Day is all about, and I think I've got it.
Valentine's Day is about love.
Okay, yes, it's also about card companies and florists and chocolatiers making a shitton of money off of people who think that's what Valentine's Day is all about. For them, it's about money. By that logic, so is Christmas. But the real meaning of Valentine's Day is to celebrate love, and the sad truth is, most people think that the only love there is is the romantic kind. I happen to know for a fact that that is bullcrap. Think about it: You love your parents (provided they're not horrible, sick, twisted, evil human beings). Would you ever *romance* them? No! And that's one of the only things that bothers me about this upcoming day. I have plenty of single friends who, whenever this time of year comes around, find themselves inundated with red and pink and white and hearts and flowers and teddy bears with various expressions of love plastered all over them. Couples seem to come out of the woodwork solely to be gooshy and romantic right in front of the singletons, it seems. Everywhere is the reminder that this is the one day a year you're truly allowed to be romantic in public, and the implications (no matter how unmeant) that you are somehow less worthy, less valued, less important, because you lack an "other half". My single friends, throw that bullcrap on the floor and stomp on it. On this Day of Love, take the time to recognize the love you have in your life, whether it's romantic or not. Let me give you some examples:
Every day, when you come home from work, you call out that you're home. Your pet returns the call, either by running to the door and greeting you or vocalizing some how that they know you have returned now. You spend the evenings alone but for your pet, mostly, and your cat curls on your lap and purrs the moment you sit and provide him with one. Or maybe your dog runs in circles around you, jumps and wags her tail while grinning like a madman at the sight of you. Heck, maybe even your very particular parrot, who only lets you handle them, will sit on your shoulder and nuzzle against you. Your pets love you.
For years, you have known a particular person. You've known each other so long, you think of each other as siblings, or damn near. Perhaps you haven't spoken to them in some time, or you've gone through phases of varying degrees of contact, yet no matter what, whenever you see each other again, things are exactly as they've always been. Somehow you never really lose their friendship or their companionship, and you know that no matter what, you will always have them to rely upon. Your friend loves you.
Those are just some specific examples. People develop fondness and love for many different things. A person can love their job, or their hobby. A person can love a sport, whether they participate in it or just watch it on TV. A person can love their gun, or any kind of weapon. A person can love food, or education, or books... the list goes on. Love is not a solely romantic emotion; it has facets and faces and aspects that can go on forever, always fulfilling a niche somewhere in your needs. You do not need a lover to feel love, and you should remember that any and every day you begin to think that might be true. So this Valentine's Day, take the time to acknowledge the many different loves in your life, no matter what they are or how they've come into your life. It is love, it is a part of you, and it is wonderful. Celebrate it!
