I hate Valentine's Day. In the past, I have
written stories mocking the "holiday" which seems primarily dedicated to selling cards, flowers and restaurant
reservations. To be sure no holiday is more wrapped in commercialism then
Valentine's Day. While Christmas has become a marketing machine, with music and advertising carefully calculated to make us feel guilty if we aren't
spending, Christmas is also about memories of family members coming back home to
celebrate together, and being with people you loved. For most of my life, Valentine's Day was about being alone, unwanted and unloved. I had one fifteen year stretch where the only woman to send me a Valentine was my
Mother. Valentine's Day stood for commercialism combined with loneliness and
rejection. It was proof that I wasn't Good Enough.
This year is different.
This year I got to slide my ring down her finger. This year I got to see her hold it up, smiling, admiring it enjoying the sight of it on her finger. This year she wearing it to work, wanting to show everyone.
This year somebody loves me.
And everything is different.