Valentine’s Day, Two Different Approaches!
Valentine’s Day, 2019 It is the end of January and we have said good bye to the warmth and goodwill of the holiday season. Most of our neighbours have taken down their lights, and decorations and a sadness enters our hearts as we begin to understand that the benevolence of the season has passed. We sink into the inevitable acceptance that not only is the holiday season over, but we are now faced with the bleak, grey coldness of winter with nothing to warm our hearts and souls for weeks to come. For some, there is light at the end of the tunnel as Valentine’s Day arrives with the promise of new love, renewed love, or plain and simple bad love! It’s an exciting time for those who did not receive the rings they thought they would during Christmas and New Year, and a disappointing time for who currently have no one in their lives. But there is always the idea that on February 14th, a box of chocolates or a bouquet of flowers will be sent to you (preferably from anonymously), warming our hearts once again. It is with these thoughts in mind; I turned to neighbours, colleagues, and friends and asked what Valentine’s Day means to them. Some answers did not surprise me, “Bah Humbug,” “eff off!” “Too commercial,” “Not unique,” “Lacking in meaning,” “Pretty low key after 40 years.” They are right; after all, as soon as Christmas decorations are down at retailers, the Valentine’s displays go