The concept of romance is very new to me.
I am not an ooey-gooey person by nature. To me, pet names are off-putting, planning dates seem time-consuming and anniversaries are tedious to keep up with.
It shouldn’t really come as a shock that I’ve never fully grasped the concept of Valentine’s Day. I didn’t have anything against it per se, but at the same time, I couldn’t understand why so many people would willingly lose their minds over a holiday named after a long-dead Christian saint.
Why does a singular day–a measly 24 hours–matter to so many people when there’re 364 other chances to show someone you love them?
This year has been filled with a lot of firsts for me, and romance is no exception. This is the first Valentine’s Day I’ve been able to celebrate with a significant other—another woman, no less—and I can’t help but feel like I’m in over my head.
As a romance novice, I just have to know: What makes Valentine’s Day so special?
“What makes [Valentine’s Day] different from any other date night [is] you decide it’s going to be different,” Madeline Walsh, a senior studying biochemistry, said. “Like other holidays; why is Halloween different from any other night?”
“It’s a time of deliberate reflection,” Maya Abu-Zahra, a senior journalist at USC’s Annenberg, said. “With how busy people’s lives have become, It’s so easy to forget to talk meaningfully with the people you care about in your life. Holidays give you the space, the room, the time to reflect on your relationships with people.”
That’s a concept that appeals to the logically-driven side of me. I usually physically cringe when trying to express my gratitude for all the kindness I’m shown or the affection I’m given. But after hearing how others interpret the holiday, I’m starting to see how Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate the woman in my life who has encouraged me to have fun, try new things and take time to take care of myself.
So yeah, I’m beginning to understand meticulously planning for a date, getting gifts weeks in advance and waiting in line for what feels like hours to buy a perfect bouquet of flowers. Now, I
find myself actually wanting to buy all her favorite kinds of candy, make her favorite dinner, watch her favorite movie on loop and do absolutely anything she wants if that’s what it’ll take for her to understand how much I appreciate everything she’s done for me.
My opinion on Valentine’s Day has changed from what it was a year ago. While I used to think of it as a purely commercial holiday, now I believe that Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to practice expressing how much we care about the people we love.
So, happy Valentine’s Day to my lovely girlfriend, and thanks for being so easy to love. I know I’m new to romance, but you make me more eager to try.
This article is part of a special column series for Valentine’s Day 2022 and was created in Prof. Miki Turner’s JOUR 431: Feature Writing course. Visit the Valentine’s Wishes page to view more perspectives on the holiday of love (or lack thereof).