ARELLANO, Andi

2015-08421
Geog 173

Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is a day of love and romance for some, a day of friendship and family for
others, or a day of heartbreak and longing for most. For me, it was always another ordinary day.
Whether I was in a relationship or not, I did not see it as a day that should be given greater importance
to. Every year, my friends would have mixed reactions to it and would celebrate it differently. Some
would be very excited and would receive extravagant gifts and surprises from their significant others.
Some would be casual about it and sometimes, even indifferent; they would prefer to stay at home
rather than deal with the Valentine’s day traffic and influx of people in restaurants or malls. Most of
my friends would be complaining about how they do not have anyone to spend it with and would cringe
and roll their eyes at the sight of any couple being sweet. This year, I spent it with my single friends.
Valentine’s Day for us was a day of drinking, cooking, dancing, and singing. Oddly enough, there was
no hint of bitterness that you would expect from 5 single people in one room during the most romantic
day of the year. It was just a night full of laughter and friendship.

Valentine’s Day can also be a day of profit creation for capitalists – may it be big, global
companies or small school organizations – everyone comes up with a new gimmick that they can sell
to the public. Every year, the Katipunan avenue transforms into the workplace of tens of Filipinos as
they sell heart-shaped balloons, roses, and anything that is reminiscent of the special day. Every year,
the hallways in UP Diliman transforms into a place for organizations to sell their income-generating
project for Valentine’s Day such as cookies, flowers, and balloons. The academic oval gets filled with
people walking while holding bouquets and stuffed toys. The malls get decorated with anything red
and pink. Even social media is transformed – filled with hundreds of photos and videos of couples and
how they celebrated the day. This is where otherness comes into place. I believe that Valentine’s Day
basically excludes people who are not involved in any romantic relationship and couples who do not
fit into that picture-perfect look even more so. When you think about Valentine’s Day, you see a good-
looking couple, a boy and a girl, with extravagant gifts such as a Pandora charm bracelet, and a
Pinterest-inspired surprise which is not complete without printed photos and helium balloons. If you
did not spend your Valentine’s Day with your significant other in a fancy restaurant matched with a
candle-lit dinner and a big bouquet, and did not get that perfect post to put up in Instagram, then you
shouldn’t be a couple at all.

Valentine’s Day can be a day where everyone is pressured to be the perfect couple. Everywhere
you go, you feel as if it’s a competition – who has the grandest surprise, the most expensive gift, the
cutest photo with the matching cheesy caption? I believe that Valentine’s Day should just be a day
where people can enjoy. Whether it is spent with family, friends, a significant other, or alone, it should
be filled with love and happiness; and if you are sad on this day, then it is also perfectly fine. Whether
you want to be consumed by capitalism or ignore it totally, it should be spent with the important people
in your life. Whether you think it is a special day or just an ordinary day, you should not be judged and
should not judge.

1
 Valentine’s Day IGP poster. Source:
Facebook

Taken by me
Preparing the cookie dough for baking.
Source: JMA Facebook page
Valentine’s Day IGP poster.

A vendor along Katipunan Avenue.

Source: WhenInManila

Sangria. Taken by me

2
Karaoke. Taken by me