4C UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
advice
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2006
ROSES ARE VIOLET ISBLUE
Surviving solitude on a day not catered for singles
BY ANDREW J. GLENDINING
editor@kansan.com
KANSAN CORRESPONDENT
Liz Pollard isn't a fan of Valentine's Day. "I just don't think a strong emphasis should be placed on celebrating feelings that many people express year-round. I don't need a holiday to tell someone how I feel," the Mound City sophomore said.
But the American consensus disagrees. With most shop fronts decked out in red and pink and couples all over the country partaking in the tradition of Valentine's Day, this holiday strongly emphasizes the need for relationships.
Cara Rogers, Louisburg sophomore.
said an ideal date on Valentine's Day is the traditional dinner by candlelight with wine and soft music. But for Rogers, being single this Valentine's Day doesn't mean she'll be alone, feeling unloved.
This optimistic view keeps Rogers from the gutter on February 14th. But many singles feel the pressure on V-Day.
"Valentine's Day is a special day set aside to let people know you care about them, even though you do that year-round," she said. "It's extra, like a reward, having a boyfriend on Valentine's Day. And if I'm single, I do the same thing I do every day."
"It's difficult to see all your friends with boyfriends," explained Carissa Pedigo, Wichita junior. She will be spending her Valentine's Day among friends at a bar with other singles.
Power in numbers, rather teaming with her single friends, allows Pedigo to enjoy Valentine's Day without becoming subject to "single syndrome," specifically that feeling that everyone else has succeeded in finding that special someone, leaving you alone as the odd man out.
To a point, it seems cruel to assume that everyone has found or is capable of finding a significant other. Surely we aren't all meant for steady relationships and locking down this early in life. The single population is forgetting
a key aspect, or maybe the logic behind Valentine's Day.
As Hope Otero, Garden City sophomore, put it, if you're single, "try to go with someone you have a crush on."
As the tale goes, Cupid shot two people who later fell in love. He didn't shoot two people who already had feelings for one another, that would be a waste of an arrow. Valentine's Day shouldn't leave you feeling incomplete. It should serve as motivation, to reach out and tell those you love your true feelings.
It's the perfect night to suggest a more intimate relationship with anyone you have your eye on.
— Edited by Frank Tankard
V