by Sam Trailerman
It’s that time of year again — Valentine’s Day! For many, it’s almost a global observance to honour and celebrate the love of their nearest and dearest.
What is pleasure to some might be poison to others, especially if seeing loving couples together does offend you.
Do you get tired of hearing the same arguments against Valentine’s Day like a scratched record? Maybe these few lines of rebuttal might make you rethink your stance on love and Valentine’s Day, and why you might have been wrong to hate it.
If seeing couples holding hands and sharing their love stories on social media makes you feel uneasy, try keeping your banal complaints to yourself. You have the option of staying home for one night or walking up a hill with zero connectivity and returning to civilisation on February 15.
Valentine’s Day focuses heavily on material gifts, but it’s not the only way to express love. There are countless other ways. Love is built up with many languages, and it’s only unrealistic expectations in one’s head that without gifts, love could end up in tears.
Getting jealous of seeing other loving couples isn’t a reason to make Valentine’s Day your punching bag. Let them be, as they’re not rubbing their relationship in your face. As the saying goes, if you can’t beat them, why not join them?
Celebrating Valentine’s Day isn’t a conspiracy theory suggesting that it succumbs to the will of evil corporate greeting card entities.
Valentine’s Day brings countless hours of joy to children through the magical world of crayons and creative expressions of love for their moms, dads, grandparents, siblings, teachers, and more. That’s a victory lap for Valentine’s Day.
It’s another lame reason for resentful singles to make Valentine’s Day seem delusional with romantic attachments and guilt.
Those singles who lament their lack of a partner or prospect likely do so to make couples feel terrible because they themselves feel terrible — loneliness is difficult to endure when seeking companionship.
A little empathy with flowers and chocolates, cliché as they may be, can go a long way to show you care about someone. People think about your relationship far less often than you believe.
You are free to celebrate or not as you wish — dine in or even fast in protest if you see fit.
But for some, the willingness to brave the Valentine’s Day hullabaloo is akin to showing love all year round.
In certain parts of the world, Valentine’s Day is one of the most time-tested traditions. Celebrating Valentine’s Day isn’t required by law, nor is it forbidden to plan romantic experiences on the other 364 days of the year. Many of us spend our lives chasing success and other materialistic things, unknowingly ending up with empty lives.
Valentine’s Day offers a valid space for expressing love in a world busy with paper chases and train chases.
Take a moment to examine why you hate Valentine’s Day so much. If you seriously and genuinely hate it, at least be cool about it. Avoid Facebook that day. Why put yourself in a situation where you know you’ll be miserable or make others around you miserable?
Stay calm — somewhere, someone does love you. Valentine’s Day is not your enemy. “All You Need Is Love,” as The Beatles wisely sang.
WE