happy vday (February 06)

Valentine's Day. Dateless. In college. More specifically, a small, 96% residential, female-heavy college. Not necessarily the stuff of great romance.

For four years, the build-up to February 14 was a melee of red paper hearts, conversations about relationships, love song (and breakup song) playlists, and the student body bleeding red and pink skirts, shirts, dresses. It was enough to get you in the spirit, if V-day was your kind of thing. If it wasn't, it had the potential to send even the most confident of girls into a spiral of self-pity.

Sophomore year, a group of friends and I decided to have some fun with this depression and wear all black, buy copious amounts of sugary foods (i.e. entire cartons of mint chocolate chip), and line our eyes with black while sob-laugh-crying to Mandy Moore's worst, "How to Deal." It was purposely pathetic, awesome, and in that way, completely memorable. I laughed more in that little Larson Hall room than I probably would have on some awkward date. It was the exact opposite of depressive and sad and bitter.

For me, college Valentine's Days were actually lovely. Junior year, my hilariously quirky friend Ellen made me a Valentine with "Happy VD" inscribed on it. Nothing like a little STD humor to spice up a holiday. I had never felt so appreciated than first-year V-day, when every freshman girls' corridor woke to pink and red paper hearts hanging in front of our doors. A poem and two Hershey's kisses were attached, simple gestures from "The Men of St. Olaf" to warm our hearts. Later I found out, unsurprisingly, it happened to be the work of three of my favorite male classmates. I think I still have that little paper heart somewhere in my boxes of college memorabilia.

Everyone takes this day in a different stride, and I'm no different. I've always been a little apathetic about Valentine's Day as a romantic holiday, mainly because it's been more of the "single's awareness"-style post-high school (and because, regardless, Mom will always remember to send a little something special). And that's okay. Honestly, bitterness dissolves. If anything, February 14 is simply a nice excuse for me to pause, consider the people who I value the most, enjoy some extra chocolate, and, yes: enjoy the glow of warm-hued holiday attire all over town.