I'm a sucker for any holiday that comes with decorations. St. Patrick's Day? Time to break out the green. Cinco de Mayo? Time for taco night! Easter? Better get a new dress to wear to church.
The first March that Chris and I were married, he came home to find me making green drinks. They were disgusting, by the way. Some weird mix of mint and powdered sugar. But it was before I knew that not every recipe on Pinterest was fail-proof.
He didn't really understand why we needed to have green drinks. Granted, this is coming from someone who didn't even really like to celebrate Christmas before me, so obviously he had a lot to learn. I told him we didn't need green drinks, but that any reason to celebrate is a good one.
It should come as no surprise, then, that I love Valentine's Day. A holiday that is celebrated with way too much pink and chocolate and champagne and love?! Sign me up.
I know that when it comes to Valentine's Day, a lot of people are in the camp of, "It's holiday that Hallmark has exploited to trick us into thinking it's an opportunity to celebrate something we should already celebrate everyday."
And to that I say: Of course it is.
But why not just go with it?
Now, if you're really celebrating every day with chocolates and love letters, than by all means, carry on. But since I doubt very many of us do that, why not take Valentine's Day as an opportunity to celebrate life? After all, you should be in love with your life, if nothing else.
So this week, celebrate. Make chocolate-covered strawberries. Give a cheesy card. Get sucked into buying something pink and love-themed. Make dinner reservations for Sunday night. Or stay in and cook something special. Buy overpriced candy and flowers. Just celebrate the day of love.
And when that's over, keep celebrating. Celebrate life. The Mondays and the Thursdays that may feel mundane, but are really reminders that you are alive, and are opportunities to celebrate that.
Celebrate your marriage, your friends, yourself. Celebrate that it's Tuesday and the sun is shining. That your car started and you made it to work on time. Celebrate the cheesy holidays with the decorations and cards and presents. Celebrate that you're alive, that you're happy.
This is life. It's your only one. It should be celebrated.
