Give V-day a Break!

I sat in English Thursday, listening for almost two hours as my teacher facilitated a discussion that could have been titled, "Why Valentines Day is Mankind's Worst Modern Invention." My classmates went back and forth sharing their passionate opinions on everything from the chocolate-rose-card company conspiracies to holiday-related suicide rates. I get it. It's cool to hate Valentines Day. If you're not in a relationship, you hate that it makes you consciously aware of your single status. If you are in a relationship, you hate that you have to show-off your love by buying candies and roses.

But I just don't see the big-bad, cynical side of V-day that everyone else does.

(In the sake of full disclosure: I've been happily dating an incredible kid for over 2 years and I'm still starry-eye in love with him. I've shared Valentines Day with him, with others, and with no one, and February 14th has never made me jaded.)

To me, it's a day to surprise my magazine staff with heart-shaped cookies and my roommates with chocolates. It's a day to be a kid again and make old-school valentines from construction paper. It's a reason for my grandma to send me an I'm-thinking-of-you card and my parents to send me a we-miss-you care package. It's a reminder to tell the people in my life how much they mean to me. And yes, it's a day to fall in love all over again with someone I sometimes take for granted.

I think in life you always have control over two things--your attitude and your actions. So while Hallmark holidays might not be your thing, being negative about it just brings you down more. And life's way too short to be negative all the time! Let people be sappy, send flowers and eat chocolate if it makes them happy, and find something positive that brings happiness to your life!