As Valentine’s Day nears, I wonder how this event didn’t get its own statutory holiday. I mean, come on, it’s love!
Christmas has carols and New Year’s Day has a goodbye song, so what’s the international song for Valentine’s Day? So, I checked and the top songs for Valentine’s Day were mostly performed by artists who are in their 80s now or have passed on. There are a few contemporary artists with the flair to express love through music, but I guess back in the day musicians had a lot of loving in their minds and hearts. Most songs are about long-lasting love, except perhaps the country-and-western song that told the more woeful story of pining for a lost love – or a lost hound dawg.
Valentine’s Day is supposed to be a day to offer your secret crush a chance to take you out or vice versa. We can dare to be brazen on this day. I made a mistake one year as a child where I was chased around by an enamoured teacher and now I know why it’s an adult thing. I was traumatized for a few days, but I got over it and lived to write about it many decades later. Back in the day it wasn’t uncommon for someone to snip out intricate patterns on a lattice heart, the fancier the cut the more thought was put into it. Today, well, over a billion online Valentine cards will be sent to all you lovers out there.
So, the questions beg to be asked. Why isn’t there a national holiday for Valentine’s? Perhaps love is just fleeting, or the act just can’t be sustained all day. Shouldn’t the little blue pill be advertised all week at least? But I guess it’s just Mother Nature who says the fun should start later when the sun goes down and all is quiet except for the flames flickering in the fireplace and the wine airing itself, while the chocolate is doing its magic and Marvin Gaye is playing in the background. Hopefully, all the kids and grandkids will be in bed by then.
As for the easiest way to a man’s heart, well, the stomach knows best. In this case: slow-fried ptarmigan hearts anyone? Yep, a man’s heart is expensive when it comes to food but when it involves poutine or pizza, they do just fine when you have other interests in mind this coming Valentine’s. I would say it could be the national day of swooning after a night of wining and dining, but it’s the thoughts that count. Don’t forget chocolates, which are considered to be the way to hearts of all ages. For this Valentine’s, if the local airline could carve out a heart in the clouds on that day, it would make me smile. But that’s a little expensive and lawsuits could happen. Imagine telling the judge you did it for love.
Again, back to music, any song with Valentine in it should do. Hopefully the radio deejay doesn’t swoon live on air. Have a great Valentine’s Day all you lovers out there!