Is Valentine’s Day overrated or underrated?

Emelie Patti, Staff Writer

Valentine’s Day, as you know, is the day where couples around the world celebrate the love that they have for each other. Many people celebrate the day in joy and love while others do not celebrate the day at all. Some might find the “holiday” rather cheesy and wrong for couples to celebrate their love on only one day when really, you should express your love everyday.

It is great to give your significant other flowers or gifts on Valentine’s Day. And very understandable that you wouldn’t want to give them gifts everyday. I just feel that if you really love someone, why would you need a holiday to prove that you love someone or even more express your love for them.

Some think giving gifts proves your love or makes it stronger. Others just find it nice to give your lover a gift, something that they might have wanted. But some people think giving gifts is unnecessary because all they really want is each other.

“I think Valentine’s Day is important because it is a day to show your love to important people in your life. I think it should be a holiday because it’s good to feel loved and let others know they are also loved. My favorite part about Valentine’s Day is the heart shaped doughnuts from Krispy Kreme,” RJR sophomore Anne Foster said.

You cannot go wrong with a Krispy Kreme doughnut on the love day but some think that it is shoving love into peoples faces. There is nothing wrong with expressing your love with your significant other but there is a time and a place. You do not need to show everyone your affection for one another in front of people around you. It is unnecessary and unwanted by other people outside your relationship.

“I usually don’t do anything to celebrate Valentine’s Day. I think it’s overrated and couples put too much pressure on the holiday. We should not use Valentine’s Day as an excuse to show appreciation for the people we love, we should be doing that every day,”  RJR sophomore Grace Wilson said.

What makes Valentines Day so important from any other day with your loved one?

Valentine’s Day was originally brought up by the Christian Church during the third century in Rome.  There are many myths about how valentine’s day started. One legend talks about a time when Emperor Claudius II outlaws marriage to young men. He believed that single men were better soldiers than fathers. Once Valentine realized this, he went behind Claudius and continued to perform marriage in secret for young lovers. Claudius discovered Valentines actions and ordered that he must be put to death, which is how he became a Martyr. Valentine became a Catholic martyr after his works to make sure love is spread around even through hate. Often today many people get caught up in all the negatives that are happening in the world that we forget about all the love. St. Valentine is a good role model to remember when you feel that the world has shut you down with hate. Remember that love can conquer anything.

I do not think that everyone should hate Valentine’s Day, I just think people need to rethink the meaning. Valentine’s Day should be a reminder that even in a world of hate we should never forget to really appreciate the people we love. Often most people forget how important love is to the world and I think it is good to have a date on the calendar to remind everyone that.

Photo provided by Creative Commons