Still no Valentine? We promise it’s not the end of the world

Singles, this one is for you

(Image by Alleksana via pexels)

As a perpetual single, let me just tell you there is more to life than having a Valentine. Sure, it might be nice to receive flowers (please not red roses) and your favourite candy from someone who isn’t related to you, but rest assured – you don’t need a romantic partner to make the most of this consumerist holiday. 

Not to mention, the pressure is always on women to be partnered up, while everyone else can just live their lives and vent on Reddit without judgment. No one is checking for their soft launches. 

So, who’s responsible for this lovely occasion? You may have heard that a St. Valentine is at the root of the celebration. While there were actually multiple St. Valentines (or they might even be the same person, no one really knows) involved at some point, there’s a lot more to the story than just a saint. Stay with me. 

Emperor Claudius II Gothicus was believed to have imprisoned and executed at least three Valentines during his reign from 268 to 270 AD for various acts of treason. One Valentine was said to have signed a note to their lover as “from your Valentine” before his death. The specifics are a little hazy, but the stories that have circulated frame him as a romantic hero. 

While some believe the celebration commemorates Saint Valentine’s death, others think the placement of the holiday was an attempt by Christians to phase out the outrageous annual fertility festival (it was even more ridiculous than it sounds) in ancient Rome. Lupercalia was celebrated on February 15, also known as the Ides of February. 

Basically, members of the Lupercai would sacrifice goats (fertility) and dogs (purification), then fashion the skins into strips used to gently slap both women and crops. The women were down with it (it seems that babymaking as a priority has ALWAYS been that serious), but as the celebration continued, the men increasingly indulged in alcohol, which led to a more violent turn. 

After about a thousand years, Pope Gelasius I denounced the tradition and declared Feb. 14 a day in honour of Saint Valentine. However, the day was not associated with love and romance until much later. 

The lovey-dovey aspect of it all ramped up around the 1380s, when poet Geoffrey Chaucer wrote his poem The Parliament of Fowls, which was the first recorded acknowledgement of Valentine’s Day as we know it today. Once more prominent poets, such as Shakespeare, jumped on, Feb. 14 became synonymous with love, romance and all that good stuff. (If you’re wondering where that big baby fits in, Cupid is a Hellenistic Greece era interpretation of Eros, the Greek God of love.) 

With the introduction of mass production, Valentine’s Cards spread like wildfire, and we haven’t looked back since. 

Of course, there have been moments of protest from empowered singles. Hero to many millennials (probably), Dustin Barnes founded Singles Awareness Day in 2001, turning his and his friends’ single status into a cause for celebration. Naturally, he chose Feb. 15, which not only allows for undivided awareness of singles but also provides an opportunity to take advantage of super-discounted chocolate. 

However, if participating in Single Awareness Day isn’t your vibe (is it anyone’s?), there are other, far more fulfilling ways to spend the day as a single person. 

I’ve been celebrating Galentine’s Day for the past five or so years, and I look forward to it every year. Whether it’s a potluck brunch, impromptu movie night, a gossip sesh or an entire day of all three, I cannot recommend this enough. Last year, I hosted my friends, and each of them brought something to the Galentine’s feast. We watched The Princess Bride, played Nintendo Switch Sports and exchanged Valentines and best believe we’re doing it again this year. 

If you’re looking for recommendations for your Galentine’s celebration:

Album: Man’s Best Friend

Book: The Lady Bird Book of Dating

Movie: The Princess Bride/Broken Hearts Club

If you’d rather spend the day introspectively reflecting (but in an empowering way):

Album: Who’s the Clown

Book: Love, Pamela

Movie: Modern Whore

If you’d rather spend the day kicking your feet and fantasizing: 

Album: Yours Truly/B Day

Book: Get a Life, Chloe Brown

Movie: Rye Lane/Set it Up

And let’s be so for real, it gets to a point when the doom-swiping on everyone’s Instagram stories gets to you. It’s okay to take a break. It’s okay to spiral. 

Album: SOS

Book: Really Good, Actually

Movie: Blue Valentine/Moonlight