Many look at Valentine’s Day  as a day to celebrate your love for one another, but why does that have to be celebrated only on one day? Why not celebrate your love for each other every day? And where does this ‘holiday’ even come from?

Valentine’s Day has its origins in the Roman festival Lupercalia, a festival to celebrate the coming of Spring by auctioning women to men through a lottery system. At the end of the 5th century, Pope Gelasius had Lupercalia replaced with St. Valentine’s Day; it took Lupercalia’s idea of ‘romance’ and channeled  it into Valentine’s Day, named after the patron Saint Valentine. History.com states in their History of Valentine’s Day article that  the history of Saint Valentine is not very clear as there are multiple different Saints named “Valentine or Valentinus,” all of whom were martyred. One Saint Valentine was thought to be a priest who continued to conduct marriages after it had been outlawed by Emperor Claudius II and was sentenced to death. Another Valentine was thought to help Christians escape from Roman prisons after  falling in love with the jailer’s daughter. Whichever Valentine it is talking about, it is important to note that their stories all revolve around love in some way, which is why Valentine’s Day is associated with love.

 But back to the ‘problem’ with Valentine’ Day. We should be celebrating our love for one another every day; it doesn’t need to take place on only one day. Insider’s “Why Valentine’s Day is the worst,’ points out the expensive nature of Valentine’s Day given many people expect flowers, candy, cards, and jewelry. Additionally, some may expect high end, luxurious dinners. These expectations  can be extremely hard to meet considering many places are usually completely booked by other couples at least 1-2 months in advance. This is one of the biggest reasons many have problems with Valentine’s Day: it takes a heavy toll on many people’s wallets when it doesn’t take money to show that we love each other.

Many expect the best of the best come Valentine’s Day, but many don’t have the money or time it takes to set ‘the best’ up. Many arguments can spark from someone’s expectations for Valentine’s Day not being met instead of just celebrating. Further, many single people become upset with Valentine’s as it separates them from many couples spending time together.

Many still will compare their Valentine’s Day to others’ and how they spent their day. This also may lead to more arguments between couples. 

Valentine’s may have its advantages but it’s important to note the disadvantages of Valentine’s and how it can hurt many couples with its unrealistic standards and multiple argument situations over little things.