When you think of Valentine’s day, you think about chocolates, and flowers, and cheesy Hallmark cards. When I think of Valentine’s day, I think of it as a corporate scam. Why do we have one day out of the year dedicated to love? It’s stupid – we should be showing our love to our loved ones all year round from gift giving, or even words of affirmation. You don’t need to buy gifts to show your appreciation. Spending time and making homemade gifts are just as good; if not better, because it shows that your are thinking of them and spent time out of your day to do this for them. 

“I think it’s cool, but it’s about the presents and not about how much you appreciate the person – almost like it’s one-upping the other person. Like who can get the other person a better gift,” said senior Haylie Colby. 

Corporate America makes a lot of money off of Valentine’s day. As of 2023, “Planned Valentine’s Day spending in the United States was expected to reach approximately 26 billion U.S. dollars in 2023. This is an increase of about two billion dollars from 2022, ” wrote D. Tighe on the website Statistica.

I personally think that’s a lot of wasted money on cards, chocolates, dates and flowers. I can admit I do spend money on Valentine’s day for my loved ones. I’ll buy flowers for them, and if I like you enough maybe you’ll get chocolates and a card too, but that’s not very common. 

“I think Valentine’s day is sad because no one wants to spend it with me,” said an anonymous senior.

This Valentines day instead of spending a lot of money on chocolates or pre-made gifts try making some yourself. You can do things like making cookies together. You can make your friend or special someone a homemade card. You can make a jar that has 100 reasons why I love you in it; yes, I know that’s pretty cheesy, but some people enjoy that kind of stuff. 

This is just my opinion, but I would rather spend time with someone and make a memory that lasts forever, than buy them a box of chocolates that’s going to last anywhere from an hour to three days tops. I think Valentine’s Day is a fun holiday, but there are definitely better ways to show someone you love them.