Incoherent Babble

Well, I thought I’d wait until after everyone had calmed down from the so-called “holiday” to bash it. If I had somehow negatively affected the flower sales, Hallmark might have sent their hit men after me, and I doubt any of us really wants that to happen, right?

So what, you might be asking yourself, is wrong with couples celebrating their love for one another? To this I simply respond: BLAH! I certainly have nothing against celebrating love for one another, just as I have nothing against people celebrating at Christmas when they’re spending time with their families (even though this may not be a cause for celebration in some cases). What I despise is the over-commercialization of holidays, and this is what brings me to my problem with Valentine’s day. Valentines isn’t a “holiday” that has simply been over-commercialized. Without the commercialization of the holiday, it doesn’t exist in the first place. The entire day is built up around material goods: flowers, cards, candies, and expensive dinners out. If you eliminate all these things from the “celebration”, you don’t have a single thing left.

While at Christmas, even though it has become severely over-commercialized, amidst a seemingly dwindling true Christmas spirit (I have to say, this past Christmas was the least enchanting one I’ve ever experienced. Perhaps this is due to my increasing age, which brings with it an increased level of cynicism and bitterness about the world around me, perhaps not.), one is still able to find some manner of joy for the true spirit of the season. Whether it be through seeing families reunited for the holidays (just take a trip to the airport and watch people as they meet their rides after getting off the plane), or when you see a child open their presents and play in the snow on Christmas morning (ok, so maybe the snow was in a movie, since I’ve never in my life seen a white Christmas). Valentine’s day lacks all this luster and illusion. It is solely built upon sex and commerce. Not only does it have no true spirit, but it also helps to downplay the single life, and in doing so depresses those who find themselves without a “Valentine” at the end of the day.

You’re probably wondering now if I really know what I’m talking about, or if I’m just another one of those bitter people who downplay the holiday simply because I was single and unable to partake in it. Well, to answer your question, yes, I was single yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that, and the day before that… in fact, many days before that (I’ve been single for over a year now), and I’m still single today, nor do I foresee a change in the next few hours. This, however, isn’t the point. I’m single, and I’m happy to be, particularly at this time of year. When the holidays and the end of the year start approaching, things start getting incredibly hectic at work, and the last thing I need on my mind is how well my relationship is doing and what kind of present would be appropriate at this point. In fact, last year I even tried it. I had a girlfriend as we approached Thanksgiving, and I got so stressed out at work I eventually just stopped calling her. The relationship died, and I felt horrible about it. (In the end she joined some kind of freaky cult and married their leader… Surely I jest? Surely not…) Now why in the world would I want to voluntarily inflict this upon myself at Christmas, much less the day devoted entirely to relationship disasters?

The bottom line is, I think people have lost sight of the reasons holidays have been created. We’ve got Christmas, Valentines Day, Easter, Halloween, and Thanksgiving… Christmas is going downhill sharply, Valentines Day was created at the bottom of the gorge, Easter isn’t really a holiday (in my opinion anyway), and with Halloween it’s expected. All I’ve got left is Thanksgiving! What am I supposed to do when they kill it? Call it a good (or kinda) life and check out? I implore you, don’t forget the true reason we create holidays… to respect events and enjoy the love and fellowship of the family and friends we have in our lives…