It’s a new year, a new semester has arrived and whether or not you follow sports, it’s an exciting time to be a fan. However, there is one major holiday that is not sports related and, not counting New Year’s Day, it’s the first major holiday of the year and can be interpreted two different ways, depending on your relationship status. Valentine’s Day is a day of love for some and a corporate cash grab for others. In accordance with tradition, let’s go over the history of this holiday.

The history has two theories – the first is to commemorate the anniversary of Saint Valentine’s death around 270 A.D. Other theories claim it was to Christianize the pagan celebration of Lupercalia, a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders, Romulus and Remus, which involved animal sacrifices, women and croplands being slapped with animal hides dipped in blood and marriage by matchmaking.

The holiday survived the rise of Christianity but was outlawed because it was deemed “un-Christian.” It wasn’t until the end of the fifth century when Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine’s Day and it wasn’t long after that the holiday was associated with love. During the Middle Ages in France and England, it was believed the day was the start of mating season for birds, reinforcing the idea of the day being associated with romance, first recorded in 1375 by Geoffrey Chaucer in his poem “Parliament of Foules.”

Valentine’s greetings started to appear after 1400. The oldest known Valentine was a 1415 poem by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. It is theorized that, several years later, King Henry V had a Valentine written by John Lydgate for Catherine of Valois.

The modern Valentine’s Day started in the early 1700s. In addition to being celebrated in the United States, it is also celebrated in Canada, Mexico, France and Australia with the UK starting to celebrate in the 17th century. By the 18th century, it was common to share tokens of affection on that day.

In 1840, however, Esther A. Howland started mass producing elaborate ‘Valentines’ with lace, ribbons and colorful pictures. By the 20th century, printed cards replaced written letters because they were cheaper to produce, making Valentine’s Day the second largest card-sending holiday with 145 million cards sent every year.

So, allow me to Change Your Mind!

I have no problems with the holiday itself as I see it as a day of showing affection to sweethearts, fiancés, partners, etc. Let them have their fun.

I do, however, have a problem with what the holiday ignores entirely. It is something that determines the opinions of what Valentine’s Day means and with a group of people this holiday ignores – single men and single ladies. Given how commercial the holiday is (alongside Christmas, Halloween, Easter and the Fourth of July) this begs the opinion the holiday is a big corporate event where greeting cards are bought in droves and the greeting card companies are the only ones gaining profit.

There is even an alternate holiday associated with Valentine’s Day as Singles Awareness Day is celebrated the day after Valentine’s Day. Even those who are single can enjoy the holiday with a relationship that completely understands, relates and empathizes about what a person is going through and the struggles that lie ahead. That person is themselves, one of the most important relationships anyone can have. So take this opportunity on a day devoted to love and reinforce the feeling of love you have for yourself and celebrate  alongside the people who care for you and prove you don’t need another person to feel happy.

If you are single or can’t be with your special someone during Valentine’s Day, allow me to share some advice about how to avoid the Valentine’s blues. Make it a movie night. Find a movie on your favorite streaming service or go to the local cinema and pick out a movie you would like to watch. You can have a movie marathon if one movie isn’t enough.

If movies aren’t your thing, have a casual night out with friends and go somewhere you have never been before like a restaurant or a local museum. If you don’t want to go out, you can set up a game. Another example is a spa day for those who want to mellow out and relax from the chaos that is the real world. Schedule a massage or go to a local spa to get that R and R you desperately need.