ALT-2 Valentines Day and the Older Person
While Valentine's Day is more traditionally a day focused on the fresh and vibrant nature of "young love", there is nothing more special that remembering a life of love through Valentine's Day as you get older. Of course, the heart shaped boxes of candy and the stuffed animals with pink, heart noses are not necessarily the best way for someone older to show, or to receive, affection and love, but that doesn't make the day any less important.
My grandparents are both in their eighties. They have been married for more than sixty years, an amazing milestone in this day and age. Even though the days of spontaneous and passionate "young love" have long since passed them by, my grandparents still find sweet and tender ways to show each other how much they care. My grandfather never fails to get my grandmother a sweet and sappy card to show just how "young" and alive his feelings for her still are, and my grandmother normally fixes a special dinner for my grandfather, infusing the food with her own love and adoration. It is not uncommon to see them steal a sweet and loving kiss when they think no one is looking either!
Of course, as people age, they sometimes lose the ones that they love, making a day like Valentine's Day more difficult. For those family members that are no longer with their partners, the gesture of sweetness that comes with a pretty bouquet of flowers and a card from a child or grandchild is often the thing that turns sadness to joy.
One generation younger, my parents still find fun and loving ways to show each other how much they care on Valentine's Day as well. They always exchange cards, my mother getting my father the serious card and my father getting my mother the more fun and flirtatious card. They usually always go out to dinner, or create a special dinner at home, where they enjoy a cocktail or two and reminisce about the years gone by. Typically there is an exchange of gifts, that have become more whimsical as the years have passed...a heart patterned set of boxers and a cute stuffed bear not uncommon. Sharing love, laughter and the spirit of mature and lasting love is what makes the day special for my parents.
I've been married for four years, and now that my husband and I are both nearly thirty years old, Valentines Day is not the commercialized celebration that it once was for us. It's no longer necessary to "show our love" through gifts, rather we like to celebrate our commitment through doing something that will provide us with a lasting memory. Last year, my husband made a reservation for us at a local restaurant and then surprised me with a night in an oceanfront hotel room. He had purchased several bars of exotic chocolate and a bottle of champagne, which we shared on our balcony under the moonlight.
I think that as we age, so does our love and the way that we show our love. Valentine's Day is special, no matter your age, and as long as you remember that "love" is the reason for celebration, every Valentine's Day will be one to remember!
