Ken Nhu

What is Valentine’s Day?

Valentine’s Day. A day that singles hate, men dread, and women own, to say the least. For most, the holiday is a hassle. It sets upon expectations that those in relationships must act upon in order to keep the peace. But like most holidays, the true value of the celebration is lost behind materialistic, superficial, and exterior principles.

For example, thanksgiving becomes more centered on eating food and watching football. Christmas becomes focused on presents, shopping, and large sales. Independence day becomes focused on obtaining and lighting illegal fireworks. Valentine’s day is no different. With all of the teddy bears, chocolates, cards, and flowers, we forget the true idea of Valentine’s Day.

Valentine’s Day can be a tough day. For those that are single, they have to spend an entire day being reminded of how lonely they are and how they wish they had someone to share anything with; to love and feel loved by someone else. And for those that are in relationships, they have to live up to the expectations that the holiday has set upon them as couples. They have to give certain gifts and plan certain events to keep within the conventions of the holiday, yet be original or be judged for it.

But with all of that aside, what is something else the holiday does for us? What is something else Valentine’s Day has to offer? How can we get the most out of Valentine’s Day?

How can we make Valentine’s Day more enjoyable?

The answer lies in our minds.

The idea of Valentine’s Day, like anything, can be perceived in numerous ways. Like said earlier, it is easy to be pessimistic and bitter about the holiday if you don’t believe it has anything to offer you. On the other hand, it’s also easy to take advantage of the holiday if you do have someone to share it with. However, with both of those views aside, the most rewarding thing Valentine’s Day has to offer us is that it reminds us of the potential of love.

It reminds us that love is important, that love is valuable, and that love is present . It reminds us that love exists and that it is prominent. It reminds us to give. And love is a gift. It reminds us to stop and remember to integrate love into our lives. It reminds us that love is important to our wellbeing. It reminds us that love should not be forgotten and most importantly that it is real.

All holidays have a theme that they teach us and this is Valentine’s Day’s theme. It isn’t easy to understand this directly and it takes a very open mind to accept this concept, however by reading these thoughts, it is a step. Unfortunately, social pressures slowly take this theme away from us and make us want things we don’t actually want. So with this article, I remind you that the idea is to feel the core of Valentine’s Day. To understand the truth. It isn’t about whether we are in a relationship or not. It is about what we feel on the inside and how we view love in our heads and our hearts.

Nothing is stopping us from enjoying Valentine’s Day, whether we have something tangible and physical or not. Likewise, nothing is stopping us from taking in the spirit of Valentine’s Day whether it’s February 14^th or not. The overall idea is that certain mindsets like these can help us make the best in all situations and opportunities presented to us. If we choose to think this way, in the end we will end up being happier and healthier. Whether or not we actually take action, it relies on creating the thought, however long that thought lasts.

-Ken Nhu