It’s a very special Celebration Friday, the start of a holiday weekend, one that also encompasses the one day that seems most intended to make perfectly normal, wonderful people feel like total losers if they aren’t starry-eyed in love and preferably getting engaged/married/remarried on Sunday. Yes, indeed, it’s Valentine’s Day!
And here in Ontario they added a new holiday a few years back. And, while I applaud anything that will make February a little more bearable, did they really have to name it Family Day? In our house, we call it “We Prefer the Electorate Straight and Procreating Day” because that’s the message it seems to be sending. Would Friendship Day have been too much of a stretch? It’s as saccharine, but way more inclusive. We all have a friend or two. Better yet, why not just call it Bleagh Day, because that’s what most Ontarians say to themselves when they look out the window on a February Monday anyway.
I’ve gone off on a bit of a rant here, when what I really want to do is offer suggestions on how to salvage what can be a pretty dire weekend. And the most important thing I want to say is don’t be mowed down by the Valentine’s Day/Family Day machine. Stand up to it and spend the weekend your way! If you’re single, celebrate the joys of single life. If you’re in a relationship, celebrate what’s good in that without any pressure to fit some greeting card notion of what your relationship should look like. If you’re childless, oh man, don’t get me started….
The impulse to celebrate is a good one. Please don’t give that up just because you don’t fit the parameters of the day. I say hijack the holiday and celebrate your own life.
Since Alan and I have a long history in and around the hospitality business, we avoid restaurants on Valentine’s Day. Entire dining rooms filled with tables for two make for a long and difficult night for restaurants, so out of solidarity with our friends in the biz, we stay home with friends. But you might want to get a group together and go out. A table of five or seven or twelve might make a refreshing change for the wait staff. Just, please remember to tip generously.
In thinking about writing this post, I kept thinking about my Dad, who, whenever he felt like his kids were ganging up on him, would stare us down and say, “My house, my rules!”
I applaud that sentiment and suggest that we all apply it even more broadly. Aside from things like stopping for red lights and not blasting your stereo at 3:00 AM I’d like to suggest adopting the motto, “My life, my rules!”
What do you think?
This, and every Valentine’s Day I celebrate/honour/remember:
People who’ve escaped the prison of an abusive relationship; people who are courageously attempting to break the cycle of violence AND the people who’ve supported them – no one gets out alone.
http://www.vday.org
That’s my annual VDay rant (more or less, depending on my audience).
On Monday I will celebrate/honour/remember my ‘family’; people in my circle of mutual support and encouragement.
Happy Family Day, Barb and Alan!! 🙂
OK, you made me cry a little with that one…
and a Happy Family Day to you, too!
And thanks for the VDay information – it’s really important!
You will have not intended to do so, but I think yo&;u8217#ve managed to express the state of mind that a lot of people are in. The sense of wanting to assistance, but not knowing how or where, is one thing quite a lot of us are going via.
I don’t mint the “Family Day ” name as long as we begin to understand “family” in a broader sense. While I delight in my biological family (they’re the best!) , I feel blessed by the many people that drift in and out of my life for hours or years and are indeed considered “family”.
Last night at our pizzafest only 3 of the 8 people were related to me but there was enough love in the group for everyone and they each brought something special to the mix. The conversation was so animated at one point I though I may have to be called in to referee. This type of interchange is more likely to happen when people from differing background get together.
Sometimes I wonder why I’m the one writing this blog – my readers and commenters are so smart!
Sounds like a great gathering, Mary!
Very moving. For the last 8 years of our marriage, my wife and I have kept a red journal of love letters. On Valentines, and only on Valentines, we read the previous years unread letters to each other.
Great post. Enjoy your holiday!
What a lovely idea, Josh! Thanks for telling us about it!
If my car had not died, my roommate and I were going to get donuts and watch cartoons for the first part of the day. Then we were going to get Chinese food and watch a movie. But because I am spending the whole day waiting for someone to come fix the car, I am doing homework and eatting pizza and catching up on TV. Still sounds good to me.
Especially the pizza!
Good luck with the car repairs!