Might wanna get that checked.

There are three kinds of people in regards to Valentine’s Day.  First you have the idealist, the individuals that see it as romantic (for those with a significant other) or a window of opportunity (for those without).  The former usually adopts this over the latter.  Second, you have your haters, who see Valentine ’s Day as blight on the face of humanity.  Bitter single people usually adapt this approach.  Lastly there’s the people that simple don’t care about it.  A healthy mixture of everyone takes this view.

I can’t blame people in group one or two.  There are arguments for both.  I’ve never been much for sentimentality, but I can appreciate romance.  People treat Valentine’s Day as a sign of obligation— a mark on the calendar— easy mode to appreciate that special someone in your life.

Isn’t the idea of showing appreciation random by nature?  Effective romance requires expert timing and reading your partner’s mood.  You shouldn’t need to be told to buy candy on a specific day.

On the other side of the coin, I think it’s fine to have an expected day for festivities.  I just think it’s counterproductive for everyone to celebrate it on the same day.  This is why Anniversaries are so important.  The importance comes from what the day means to you, not what it should mean to you.

To those out there who ‘hate’ Valentine’s Day, that’s a little unfair.  For some people, the ‘prescribed day of love’ carries a lot of sentiment for them.   Some people need an excuse to take the plunge, perhaps the day of love inspired them to profess their affections to someone and it paid off.  Just because they did it on the most obvious and overused day, doesn’t make their sentiment any less real.

Valentine’s day is a good thing.  It is an effective tool for change and provides some ‘romance’ for those it doesn’t come natural.