This past week we celebrated Valentine’s Day. For most, it’s a day that’s filled with possibilities. Some people, like my son, take advantage of this day to let their crush know that they are interested in them and test the waters to see if there is any chance of becoming more than just friends. Others are celebrating their first Valentine’s Day together and are stressing out over finding the perfect gift. What is her favorite flower? Does she like dark chocolate or milk chocolate? Oh no, I forgot about white chocolate! Maybe that’s her favorite? Which restaurant does she like the best? Then you have the couples that everyone considers to be the ideal. Teenagers, or at least the ones in the CNaz youth group, call them #goals. These are the people that, even after several years, still look at each other with puppy dog eyes and don’t have to stress about making Valentine’s Day perfect because every day together is special. They celebrate, but the pressure is off because they are comfortable with each other and are committed in their relationship. The hardest part of their Valentine’s Day is figuring out when to order the flowers without her knowing so she is surprised at work when the delivery comes.
The group that is overlooked on Valentine’s Day is the singles. This is the group that I fall into. There isn’t a special person in our life to spoil us, or anyone to spoil in return. We know that Valentine’s Day is really just another name for Singles Awareness Day, but it is still exciting because it is the day before one of the best days of the year. February 15. The day that all the good candy goes on clearance. The flowers that cost $25 yesterday are now only $12.50, and anything that has a Valentine theme is half price. The Valentine flowers are somehow prettier than the flowers that you can buy the rest of the year, so this is the day to buy yourself some flowers to liven up the house, stock up on enough of the good candy to last until Easter candy goes on clearance, and be thankful that you didn’t have to pay full price for all of these things yesterday! The pressure is off. You know what flowers you like, what your favorite kinds of candy are, and the hardest part of the day is getting to the store before all the Reese’s are sold out (which I failed at this year but it’s ok because I scored Dove chocolates). Perhaps the lesson we can learn from February 15 is that we don’t have to depend on someone else to make us feel loved and valued. We can love and value ourselves at half the price!
