Everywhere I look, I'm constantly reminded that Valentine's Day is fast approaching. WSJ had an article or two everyday for the past week reporting on the business of romance. Every other banner ad is by 1-800-FLOWERS reminding me to send flowers to my Valentine. FB asked me whether I wanted to surprise my Valentine by sending a $1 cookie. Bakeries (oops, sorry patisseries) are sending me e-mails about their special Valentine's Day gift boxes of sweets. Oh, and can't forget Open Table, kind enough to send me a list of restaurants in the area with tables available two days before Valentine's Day. There is no doubt that expectation is building up for men to do something special for women in their lives.
This all begs the question: do women really want what the commercialized material world is telling men what we are expected to give to our Valentines? Two dozen long-stem red roses that arrives in a FedEx box? A box of chocolates from Duane Reade? A romantic dinner where the chef has already decided the menu for the night and boot you out after 2-hour dinner so that they can get through another seating? Lingerie that never gets worn except once?
What do all of the above have in common? They are universally accepted methods of expression of our love and appreciation to the women we love (maybe not the last one). By the act of purchasing and presenting these gifts, we are telling women that we love them enough for us to go out of the way to make them feel special on this special day. But don't we express our love and appreciation regularly, even on not so special days? Maybe not in the form of gifts and dinners, but certainly in other ways, we let women know how much we love them. If so, do we really need to do something special once a year just to please the material world that we've conformed to the commercialized society?
What do all of the above have in common? They are universally accepted methods of expression of our love and appreciation to the women we love (maybe not the last one). By the act of purchasing and presenting these gifts, we are telling women that we love them enough for us to go out of the way to make them feel special on this special day. But don't we express our love and appreciation regularly, even on not so special days? Maybe not in the form of gifts and dinners, but certainly in other ways, we let women know how much we love them. If so, do we really need to do something special once a year just to please the material world that we've conformed to the commercialized society?
This all sounds logical to me. Why do I need to do something special once a year when I let my Valentine know that she is loved every day. But the reality is - love can never be explained or understood by logic. So back to the question, what do women really want for Valentine's Day? They want to be reminded that they are loved and make them feel special - even if its done everyday, it is never one too many - whether the methods are conventional or unconventional, or submitting to what's expected by our peers and society. But then what do I know about what women want?
I'm going to check 1-800-FLOWERS to check what the extra service charge is to order flowers the night before Valentine's Day.
I'm going to check 1-800-FLOWERS to check what the extra service charge is to order flowers the night before Valentine's Day.
Happy Valentine's Day!
No comments:
Post a Comment