At the start of February, students around ETHS are spending the days making exciting plans for the most romantic holiday of the year: Valentine’s Day. Whether you’re making plans for Valentine’s Day or planning the perfect romantic date, everyone can find a way to participate in this beloved holiday.
On the romantic side of things for students, seniors Claire Ross and Rob Rosenthal are trying to plan the perfect date night.
“We’re hanging out after school and making heart-shaped pizzas. We did it last year, so now we’ve made it a tradition” said Ross.
Both express their trouble finding a good movie to watch together.
“We were going to watch a movie, but we have no idea which one to watch,”
A movie night, and struggling with what to watch, isn’t just unique to students.. Spanish teacher Elizabeth Wallace says, “[My boyfriend and I are] going to watch a movie … but I don’t know what to watch. I don’t like rom-coms; I have a hard time believing they’re real life.”
Unable to find a restaurant in time, Wallace expressed her excitement about a night in with takeout. Another of her plans is to make Lego roses with her boyfriend, a popular Valentine’s Day activity.
Since the 1500s, when Valentine’s Day first became about love and romance, people have been finding new ways to express their love for each other. For example in the early 1700s, according to Alban Butler in “The Lives of Fathers, Martyrs, and Principal Saints,” boys would draw names for girls to couple up with for the day.
As for our modern times, full of romantic Valentine’s Day cards, in 1847 the first mass-produced valentines were sold by Esther Howland out of her father’s printing shop.
Since the end of the 19th century, Valentine’s Day has been one of the most commercialized holidays in the world. In 2015, United Kingdom residents spent around 1.3 billion pounds on Valentine’s Day gifts. According to the United States Greeting Card Association, around 190 million Valentine’s Day cards are sent annually to residents’ romantic partners or family members.
For ETHS band teacher Matthew Bufis Valentine’s Day is all about family.
“Having three kids at home, our plans are different than when we were without kids, and so we tend to make Valentine’s Day more about our family and our kid’s experience than just about us.” Even so, Bufis believes these traditions to be good experiences. “Typically we make dinner and do candlelight dinner. My wife will make heart-shaped cookies or heart-shaped cupcakes.”
To Bufis, the most important tradition is an experience that doesn’t happen every day: “After our dinner is fondue. We have a fondue pot where you can melt cheese. It’s got all the little forks, and our kids can dip in the bread and all sorts of things.”
Even if you don’t have a date or Valentine, there’s still someone out there for you to show your love and appreciation to.
