In defence of Valentine's Day

By Ross Parry

It’s the 13^th of February and that means the floodgates of soppy gifts and declarations of love are about to blow open for that annual mush-fest: Valentine’s Day.

Now I can’t say I’m a particular lover of the day of romance but I’m not a hater either. I just see it as a nice excuse for people to consider how wonderful our bonds with other people (or Game of Thrones box sets) can be. However, there are a seemingly endless group of people who take such a dislike to Valentine’s Day that they just can’t keep it from the world.

Single at Christmas

 By Jo Paterson

So it’s Christmas; schools have broken up for the holidays, town centres are crammed full with shoppers and festooned with lights, Christmas songs dominate radio playlists and you can’t watch anything on tv without being reminded of what the season is supposed to be about (ie. food, presents, family, love and celebrating the perfectness of life)... This isn’t a scroogey Christmas blog where I’m about to say how much I hate all these things because actually, I love them. I love Christmas. 

But what gets me is that according to the world, I’m supposed to be coupled up, receiving something expensive from my gorgeous loving boyfriend, spending Saturdays hand in hand with him in town and cold winter nights cuddling up with him on the sofa. What is it about Christmas that fills us with dread at the prospect of being alone? Christmas is all about being together, the media tell us, and I know that that is about family and friends and community. But we’re also pummelled with the idea that our Christmas isn’t perfect without an adoring other half to complete us.