The day of  red envelopes, “real” love & ridiculously expensive roses.

When I was at school, Valentine’s Day was serious business.

We’d spend weeks penning our rhymes to write in our anonymous cards 

“Roses are red,

Violets are blue…”

Usually followed by something we considered deeply romantic but, looking back, was seriously cringeworthy 🥴

Then the waiting game. Checking the school locker and the doormat for a red envelope.

Pretending we didn’t care but absolutely obsessed.

For the record, no red envelopes ever arrived for me… that weren’t from my Dad 🫤

Character building, clearly🥴

But it did make 14th February feel like something. A day charged with possibility and hope.

Today I wonder…

Is Valentine’s Day still a “thing” in the traditional sense of my schoolgirl angst.

Or has it become another commercial opportunity wrapped in crinkly cheap cellophane and tied with an equally cheap bow?

Because, let’s be honest, by early January the shops are heaving with red and heart-shaped everything.

The telly ads are pumping M&S “Dine in for two” Beef Wellington and chocolate strawberry deserts. Time saving (and totally heartless) Moonpig cards that say “To my Valentine” in your chosen font. 

It can feel less like romance and more like a retail strategy.

But then … as a celebrant and someone who spends her time talking about love in its real, imperfect, human form, I can’t entirely dismiss it either, 

because sometimes rituals matter.

I’m of the “Shouldn’t romance be everyday?” school of thought.

“Why do we need one day? We should show our love and appreciation all year.”

Love is in the coffee made every morning, the “blue jobs” I hate doing,  knowing what’s important to my partner and holding hands on the walk across Lidl car park. 

This is the reality of “day to day love”; 

But humans are funny beings, 

We mark occasions

We celebrate each other’s milestones. 

We have birthdays every year even though we’re alive every day.

So maybe Valentine’s Day isn’t about proving love, maybe it’s just our reminder to notice it.

And what about the roses?

80 quids’ worth of long-stemmed red roses.

Are they a genuine gesture, a lack of imagination or a stealth brag wrapped in florist paper?

I guess it depends. 

For some couples, that big, dramatic bunch is part of their love language. They adore the theatre of it, the extravagance and the romance of excess.

For others, it feels performative. Perhaps a social media moment … a “look what I got” post.

But I do often wonder whether the pressure to display love publicly has grown louder than the desire to simply experience it privately.

And do today’s generation even care?

From what I see, especially with working couples who are planning weddings, their younger generation approaches Valentine’s Day very differently.

Less pressure, no sense of occasion.  They’ll stay at home, order a takeaway and stay at home lounging in their trackies. 

I quite like that…. But I do that most weeks 😬

Today’s dating couples seem less interested in grand declarations and more interested in authenticity.

Not so much “Will you be my Valentine?” more “Are you still choosing me? 

Yes, I’m still choosing you too” 

Which honestly feels much healthier.

Valentine’s Day can feel fun and romantic but it can also feel laden with sadness for some.

For those who’ve lost someone.

For those who are single but don’t want to be.

For relationships that are struggling.

Love isn’t just heinously expensive roses and M&S menus for two.

It’s more complicated than that and sometimes very messy; perhaps that’s the part we don’t package up so well. 

So where do I stand on Valentine’s Day?

Somewhere in the middle I suppose. 

I don’t think love needs a marketing campaign.

But I also don’t mind a gentle nudge to say “this matters.”

Maybe Valentine’s Day isn’t about proving anything. Maybe it’s just about paying attention.

To the person beside you.

To the love you’ve built.

To the small ways you show up for each other every day.

And if a red envelope appears on the doormat?

I’ll still check with hope and feel that giddy excitement…. Even if I do recognise the writing and it’s signed “from the dogs” 🥴

We are “The Ceremony Celebrant” 

Wedding celebrants based on Spain’s beautiful northern Costa Blanca, creating relaxed, heartfelt wedding ceremonies, vow renewals and elopement ceremonies across Gandia, Oliva, Denia, Javea, Moraira, Calpe, Altea, L’ Alfàs del Pi, Albir, Villajoyosa, El Campello, Alicante and the stunning inland Jalon Valley and mountain villages. 

Our ceremonies are personal, fun and authentically you full of warmth, laughter and real connection