Valentine's Day sucks for a lot of people. Facebook today is filled with an equal number of statuses declaring, "Happy V-Day to my Dearest Love of my Life!!!" and "I wish this day would burn in a fire." And honestly, even though I have a happy relationship, I kinda understand the dislike. Like weddings and baby showers, Valentine's Day is a bittersweet reminder to many that they still do not have something they desire - a special person to celebrate life with.
Perhaps, they once had romantic love, and it got away. Pride, anger, or simply life got in the way.
Perhaps, they have never known romantic love, but continue to search for their match.
Perhaps, they are too frightened of rejection and pain, and have sworn off romantic love altogether.
Regardless, this day is going to be tough for them. Telling these people to 'just deal' is simply unfair to them. They have every right and reason to dislike this day, and these words completely disregard those feelings. Likewise, please don't tell them to "just ignore it". The reminders are everywhere. As I said, Facebook is rife with it. You can't enter a grocery store without seeing hearts and roses everywhere. Restaurants offer "2-for-1 sweetheart specials". Ignoring Valentine's Day is just about as easy as ignoring a strong stench - you can try to shut it out, but it permeates the very air around you.
So, please, today of all days, don't judge, don't offer platitudes. Simply offer love and kindness to all you meet. You may never know how much they need it.
Thanks for wording so well exactly how I feel about this day, and for understanding why I feel that way. :)
ReplyDeleteI had my first bad Valentine's day the first one I celebrated with out being married to Stevie. and seeing how we were married on that day made it all the harder. going to the store for a month was so hard. I avoided it all I could.
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