Forgetting V-Day!

I forgot about Valentines’ Day this year. I got up, showered, got dressed like normal and headed into work. About 2 minutes from the office, I had an overwhelmingly feeling of dread and panic hit me. Did I really do that? Did I? Sure enough, I glanced in the rearview mirror and confirmed my suspicions.

Yes, I had really done it. I had worn RED on Valentine’s Day.

I hadn’t meant to. This day was like any other day to me. I don’t really dread Valentine’s Day, but I don’t get all psyched either, and I certainly didn’t plan to celebrate the day wearing the color of the day. How frustrating! I almost turned right around and drove back home to change outfits because I knew what would happen. And sure enough, my co-workers started right in when they saw me… Ahhh! You wore red today. How sweet! OR So you must have a date tonight, right? OR Looking good in the color of love today, eh, Mel?

RIGHT!! I didn’t have a date, and I certainly wasn’t in the mood to celebrate. Celebrate what? This is a just another day...no cause to celebrate.

I mean, when you are single and live alone with your houseplants, you don’t find yourself waking up to a surprise bouquet of flowers, a Tiffany’s box or some scrumptious chocolates on V-day. Instead the day starts out and continues pretty much like any other day--only on this day, this glorious day, the whole world is reminding you that you live alone--with your houseplants. The whole world joins in a joyful chorus celebrating what they have, and you don’t. It’s truly a Single Awareness Day! I don’t think people mean to be so smug about their happiness, but nevertheless you feel it, and a trickle of bitterness starts to ooze from your soul, and you wonder if maybe tonight you will take up drinking hard liquor. But then you remember that you don’t really like the taste of alcohol and that Mountain Dew would probably do the trick instead, but then again, you probably wouldn’t sleep for a month since it has been over 2 years since you touched the stuff! (sigh!) So, you just try to survive the day.

You send Valentine’s to your single friends. You buy yourself chocolates or flowers. You plan a girls’ night for the upcoming weekend with your single gal pals to celebrate being partner-free. You try to smile and politely listen as your co-workers share their romantic plans for the evening with you or tell you about how their spouses really surprised them with something special this year.

And then at the end of the day, you drive home, pick up take-out from your favorite Chinese place, and snuggle up on your couch with a double feature of some of your delightful horror films. You thought I was going to say chic flick, didn’t you? Never on V-day! And you slyly smile to yourself with glee as you watch the adorably cute couple being chased by a psychotic madman on the screen...Ahh! Now that’s good stuff, and why would you want to share this moment with any one else!

Serenity now.