Every year when Valentine’s Day comes around, we wonder if it will live up to our expectations and what our relationship status will be like. As a result of romantic comedies and companies like Hallmark, Valentine’s Day has turned into more of an ordeal that elicits confusion and less of a day to celebrate love. What’s the perfect gift? How do I show that I love them without going overboard? Will I even have someone to spend the day with?
Despite all these questions that may take a toll on your emotional well-being, Valentine’s Day turns out to be a happy day for most. With the importance that college students place on this holiday, it is important for guys and girls to get a sense of how the opposite sex feels.
As a guy, getting the perfect gift for a girl has always been a struggle. Girls often use Valentine’s Day as a way to decide whether your relationship is worth it, and this is often measured by the quality of the gift. Whether to get her flowers or chocolate, or maybe even jewelry, is a toss-up to say the least, and once you decide on what to get, it’s sometimes even harder to narrow down to the specific necklace or bouquet.
Girls, on the other hand, feel more confident about giving gifts on Valentine’s Day because it is really the thought that counts — on both ends. The most important part about this holiday is the time you spend with someone special to you, and that might be where guys could use some work. Let’s be honest, Feb. 14 is for girls, and it is important for guys to show us that they care enough to spend some time planning this special day. Who cares about flowers if they arrive at your door with a random delivery man instead of your boyfriend?
As a guy, Valentine’s Day is chock-full of confusing emotions and hopeless attempts at mind-reading. It’s hard enough to know how your girlfriend is feeling on any given day, but on Feb. 14, it is almost as if she feels the need to define your relationship for the world to see. Why is it that girls feel that this holiday is the deadline to determine whether the relationship is going anywhere?
As a girl, I can vouch that we are always wondering what direction our relationship is headed in, and the media has allowed Valentine’s Day to be a marker for this. Guys have turned labeling a relationship into a negative thing, but we think it reduces any misunderstandings. The reason we put so much pressure on them during this holiday is that it is the only acceptable time a girl can ask her boyfriend about feelings and their relationships status without accusations of neediness or nagging. Valentine’s Day should be a simple celebration of happiness and love —Why are guys scared of expressing emotion?
As a guy, it’s not as much about being scared of expressing emotions to their girlfriend but rather about how you go about doing it. There’s definitely a fear about meeting your girlfriend’s expectations and expressing your feelings, and that often prevents guys from being themselves, especially on days like Valentine’s Day.
So even though guys and girls have different ways of expressing their love, they both care for each other and want to show that to the other person. Remember for this Valentine’s Day to be open and act as you feel appropriate. No need to adhere to the social stereotypes laid out by the media and popular culture.
Klibridge is a member of the class of 2015. Lerner is a member of the class of 2016.
