Valentine’s Day. Love is in the air … Roses, heart-shaped balloons, soft toys, chocolates, cards, love hearts, lingerie, romantic meals …
I’ll be totally honest: I quite like Valentine’s Day. Sure, you probably hate it with the capital H. Grrrr. You despise it because it’s a superficial, commercialized, moneymaking holiday. “Valentines Day is just a made up, corporate holiday imploring you to fork out on costly Valentines gifts. It’s designed to make money!” I hear you holler Scottsdale Florist.
But frankly, is there anyone who isn’t aware of how commercialized February 14th is? Does anyone really think they’re honoring a saint or a god when they’re buying Valentines Day gifts like choccies and flowers? Nobody anywherethinks they’re celebrating the life of a saint or anything else.
So, do you hate Valentine’s Day because you hate consumerism? The billions of pounds spent on Valentine Day gifts? Fine. You can hate consumerism. But when someone buys you overpriced flowers and hallmark cards, they’re not thinking, “Result. I’ve scored one more for consumerism!” No siree. They’re probably thinking, “My girlfriend / boyfriend / wife / husband will really love this. I want to show him / her how much I love them.”
Aside from Christmas, Easter or Mother’s Day, no holidays take as much flak as Valentines Day. In all honesty, I don’t really see where all the loathing is coming from. I can understand folks getting annoyed about the commercialization of Christmas or Easter; those occasions had clear meanings that have been slowly hidden and demoralized. But Valentine’s Day? Who can say they really know what it’s about?
We’re not even entirely sure who this holiday is supposed to honor, historically speaking. There are way too many deceased Christian martyrs named “Valentine,” and no one has been able to identify exactly which one deserves his own day. The meaning of this day of love hasn’t really been lost over time because there was never one.
For me, February 14th – and the Valentine gifts that come with it – is about enjoying and loving your significant other, friends and family. You don’t have to shell out on expensive Valentine’s Day gifts.Just smile, eat lots of chocolate and rekindle the flames of love and reignite the passion between you and your partner, or if you’re single, between you and your friends. What’s so bad about that?
There’s so much bad news in this country that the term “good news” is starting to become an oxymoron. At least on V-Day, there’ll be a temporary break on TV, and the magazines and newspapers, for one day, will print stories about LOVE, not catastrophes.
The stuff of V-Day is good for the head and the heart, in more ways than one. Not only do chocolate, red wine and declarations of love make your heart go pitter-patter in a romantic fashion, they’re also good for a healthy heart.
Chocolate, wine and love play a big part in keeping blood flowing throughout the body. Research has proven that the cocoa in chocolate can be heart healthful. It helps ward off heart disease, is jammed with antioxidants, and can also help lower blood pressure.
As for red wine, like chocolate, it’s also packed with antioxidants, can extend your lifespan and reduce the risk of getting cancer.
And how could we forget the most important thing of all – love. Love feelings can reduce stress, pain, boost your immune system and self-esteem, not to mention burn calories and promote a restful night’s sleep.
So, what will I be doing on V-Day? Probably all three of the aforementioned things. The bottom-line of Valentine’s Day: the tradition may appear to have been created by big business. However, if you really think about it, if folks aren’t grumbling and are joyfully spending for their loved ones, why argue with this tradition? Happy Valentine’s Day!
Struggling for Valentines Day gifts? GoneDigging has everything from personalized notebooks to delicious Retro sweets; all perfect ideas for romantic Valentine Day gifts. Show the special someone in your life how much you love them. As long as the message you write on your personalized Valentine gift is from the heart, you really can’t go wrong.