Feb. 14 is a unique day to celebrate love…
By: Ashley McKell
There may be valid points about this so-called, ?single awareness? day, one being that it just might not help your self-esteem.
On the contrary, Valentine?s Day is one day out of the year when everyone does not need a sweetheart in order to celebrate love.
It doesn?t matter whether you are a single, engaged, married or just starting a relationship; it is a day to show others you care about them.
?Valentine?s Day gives you an opportunity to appreciate the people you care about. Tell people how you feel,? said Aubrey Cardon, a freshman studying studio art from Seattle, Wash. ?Romance is such a big part our lives it just makes sense to have a day to celebrate it.?
Ladies, do you really need a guy to let you know you are amazing? Guys, do you really need a girlfriend in order feel manlier? The point is, if you have a sweetheart, that?s great; if not, do something nice for someone who doesn?t have one either.
If someone thinks Valentine?s Day is a painful reminder, no one would celebrate it. Instead, society turned it into a day that anyone can be part of.
Katie Brooks, a senior from Mesa, Ariz., studying humanities, did not have a sweetheart on Valentine?s last year. Rather than have a pity party, Brooks made Valentine?s Day cards for all of her friends, making not only the recipients feel better about the holiday but herself as well.
?Valentine?s is about showing people you care. I mean, try to be optimistic!? said Brooks, who is now in a relationship.
This Valentine?s Day, instead of eating a whole pint of ice cream alone, invite a friend over and make it mean-ingful. There is no way you can skip the day so be mature and stick it out.
One of the many beauties of this holiday is that you can make it as vocal or private as you want.
Steve Shaeffer and Holly Torgerson, an engaged couple at BYU, feel like you don?t need to go all out in order to impress someone.
?Just be yourself,? Shaeffer said. ?Valentine?s is a time when love is in the air, plus you get candy.?
…but why set limits at just one day?
By: Scotty Spjut
Life is full of painful reminders.
Today is Valentine?s Day, and if you?re single, then you?ve felt one of those reminders and are probably reading this with a frown on your face.
Some will tell you that Valentine?s Day is great, even if you are single, because you can celebrate love and eat chocolate. Last time I checked, you don?t need a holiday to do either of those.
Some may even feel a little optimistic, thinking they can find a reason to love someone. This confidence is quickly replaced by disappointment when they are reminded of the solitude of their romance situation.
But negative feelings toward this day aren?t only felt by those who check the ?single? box on their Facebook account.
?I think [Valentine?s Day] is silly because there should be no set date to be cutesy and romantic,? said Brynn Secrist from Castle Rock, Colo., who is currently in a relationship. ?When you expect something because it?s a certain day, it doesn?t mean as much. But if it just comes out of the blue, it means a lot more.?
But whether you?re single, dating, engaged, married or any combination thereof, Valentine?s Day can evoke disdain and apathy.
?Valentine?s Day is more a day of disappointment than a day of happiness for most girls,? said Amber Tucker, a behavioral science major at UVSC, who is single.
She blames most of Valentine?s Day woes on the fact that ?guys are idiots.?
But, turns out, women really do need these idiots to tell them how amazing they are. And those idiots really do need women in order to feel manlier. And society?s expectations haven?t helped the situation.
?The movies have ruined Valentine?s Day for me,? said Aubreigh Parks, a senior from Scottsdale, Ariz., in the nursing program. ?The movies make me think that kind of stuff will happen to me, but everyone knows it won?t.?
Parks has been married since late November of 2006 to Matt Parks, a business major at UVSC.
?It?s more of a holiday for women,? Matt Parks said, as his wife picked some food out from between his teeth, the universal symbol of true love.
But if you?re alone today, you don?t need to dress in all black to protest. You don?t need to rent a copy of ?The Notebook.? You don?t need to get all of your single friends together to try to fill each other?s romance void.
Instead of wallowing in your own self-pity, you should cheer up. It?s a holiday of love, and there are lots of people in your life to love. It may not be romantic love, but it?s love nonetheless. Tell your parents, roommates or professors you love them.
