Why Valentine's Day really IS just a grand scheme devised by the greeting card industry

You know, I've never really thought much about Valentine's Day before, except to think that's it's a sweet idea, involves fun arts and crafts and provides yummy chocolate. When I was little, it was the one day of the year Mom came to visit me at school to help with my class' Valentine's Day party. When I got older, it became a day to make little homemade valentines for my middle and high school friends and tell them how much I loved them. But now, in my final year of university, I think I'm finally starting to feel the pressure of the adult concept of the holiday: the one day of the year devoted to everything sappy.

Our society has turned February 14th from a day meant to honor two Christian saints in the days of the Roman Empire to a cheesy holiday smothered in chocolate, pepto bismal pink, and expectations. Today we either obsess over what we're getting from our special someone, obsess over what we've gotten (or forgotten) to give our special someone, or obsess over the the lack of either of the first two concerns. It's a day of nerves, anxieties, and embarassments, regardless of who you are. There are many issues I have with this. Firstly, this day is supposed to celebrate love. Not embarass people. Even I will admit that's cruel. Second, there shouldn't be expectations attached. True love, the real thing (not the fake thing that is often sold in chocolate shops or Hallmark stores, or in the movies, or on TV, or in celebrity or fashion magazines) has no expectations. It's unconditional. It neither desires nor requires anything in return. Valentine's Day doesn't understand this, and, sadly, probably never will.

By the same token, Valentine's Day professes a false love from the giving side too. Men (and often women) feel the pressure of obligations on Valentine's Day to come up with the most sweet, fun, creative, expensive, fancy dates/cards/ballons/flowers/plans/surprises/etc., etc. the list goes on. It's like a day designed to make everyone compete with everyone else to demonstrate their superiority as a boyfriend/girlfriend. So much so, that I feel like the real point of the gifts and surprises in the first place is lost. We give gifts to genuinely express our feelings, but Valentine's Day has swollen to obesity with the pressure it places on men (and women, but particularly men) to provide the most memorable and perfect February 14th experience.

And finally, why is it we designate one single day to bless our loved ones? Shouldn't that be an on-going endeavor, every day of the year? Let's not just celebrate our greatest gift from God on one single, wintery day; let's share the unconditional love of Christ everyday. Ultimately, I express my despise for Valentine's Day not from bitterness, exactly, but more from frustration. When we buy into the American Valentine's Day mindset, we completely miss the point of the very thing we are supposed to be celebrating: Love.

If there's one thing I truly can't stand, it's stuff that's not genuine. Whether it's words or weddings, I hate things that seem even the tiniest bit fake. I'm not sure why, but my conscience can't handle it, not even to give a compliment through my teeth. Valentine's Day and all its commerciality is, sadly, one of the most fake things I've ever encountered in this world, because it simply doesn't understand its own purpose. There's more to love than nasty-tasting conversation hearts and gaudy decorations. There's kindness and friendship and hope and sacrifice, and it seems to me Valentine's Day has disregarded all those.