hallmark holiday

today is valentine's day. a day for love- for chocolates- for over spending on a bouquet of red roses- for candle lit dinners, romantic gestures... and most importantly greeting cards. it is a holiday that screams commercial consumerism... a holiday that the romantics swoon for, and the cynics and hipsters dub a "hallmark holiday".

i think i must be the last of the romantics (ps check out the song next to the last romantic by josh ritter- it's wonderful) because all that i have heard for the past month is how much everyone around me seems to hate valentine's day. "its just so commercial" or "it's an excuse for everything to be over-priced" or my personal favorite, "why do i need a specific day to tell someone i love them or to have someone tell me they love me. he should do that 365 days of the year".

well, kiddos, i'm here to make a plea for the spirit of valentine's day.

it should absolutely come as no surprise that i love this holiday. i make greeting cards... it must be in my blood. this sort of thing is right up my alley, huh? well let me preface my "in defense of valentine's day" by saying that first of all, it has nothing to do with selling cards... and secondly it has absolutely nothing to do with chocolate, roses or candle lit dinners. Full disclosure- I have only been in a real relationship on ONE valentine's day- and my italian poliziotto of a boyfriend was busy keeping the dangerous streets of florence crime free to hang out. so there. this has nothing to do with romance or with chocolate or with roses and candle lit dinners.

instead my plea is much more simple.

valentine's day is ONE day built into our calendar year to tell those that we care about that we love them. it is as simple and as cool as that. it's not a conspiracy by the card designers and the florists to peddle our products. it is just a day to remind us to turn around to those around us and say "guess what? I love you" or at least, "gosh, i like you a whole lot".

it's not just for boyfriends or for girlfriends. it's for FRIENDS. it's for mom and dad. it's for brothers and sisters. it's for teachers or that coworker who always knows how to make you smile when things get stressful. it's for your favorite barista who always gets your order right just in time for you to make the train.

PLUS it's a total free pass of a day to be as silly and absurdly romantic or over the top as possible. it's a free pass for those of us out there who are chicken shit (myself included) to walk up to that cute boy we eye flirt with all the time and hand them a valentine. who knows, maybe that little valentine will the the start of something beautiful... and added bonus: if it totally flops we get to write it off as "being caught up by the hallmark holiday".

Valentine's day is a day built into our year to love others and to let ourselves be loved. and no offense to the haters and the hipsters, but we could all use a little bit of that.

let's stop looking at those coupley couples with matching scarves kissing in central park and then rushing home to eat a pint of cherry garcia in our PJs. enough of that- that's not what today is about. i promise you-- as a card designer who attends these secret conspiracy meetings about the nature of valentine's day-- that's not what today is for. instead let's embrace the true meaning of the holiday. let's get creative and open ourselves up. tell people how much you appreciate them. not with roses. not with chocolates. not even with cards (although jujuisgoodluck is perfect for that sort of thing, hint hint). just with a little bit of thought and a whole lot of heart.


so there it is... my quiet plea....

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY.

xoxo,
juju

ps. i love you all.