As I was sitting down to write this, I got curious, and decided to look up Valentine's Day on Wikipedia. Man was I surprised! My intention was to bring out a little more information about the day itself, before launching into my own thoughts, but that went out the window... if you want to know about the history of St. Valentine's day, go for it. I'm not in the mood to repeat all that I've learned.
That being said, I'll just go on with what I intended to write about in the beginning.
For about the last ten or twelve years, maybe longer, I've indulged in the custom of giving Valentine gifts, actually a rose and/or a small box of candy, to each of the special ladies at my job. Those were the ones with whom I worked regularly, or with whom I just had a very close friendship. It wasn't everyone in the organization, of course - we employed over 1400 people, after all, and half or more of them were women! There was no way I could afford even a single rose for that many - not to mention the truck I would've had to hire to deliver them!
Anyway, as thing are wont to do, it started out small, with only two or three ladies that I knew from work, but the roster of women who got flowers and candy from me was not cast in stone. Some got their first rose from me this year, and others who'd gotten them several times, had left their jobs and gone on to bigger and better things, but overall the list grew at least some, every year. By the time I handed out my last rose on Valentine's day of 2007, I had brightened that day for about twenty or so women.
"Why?" you might ask. The best answer I can give, is that I wanted each of those ladies to know that I thought well of them, and wanted them to be happy. You can't make someone happy, but you can give them a reason to be happy if they choose to use it. The stresses of the workplace are such that people often misplace their own reasons for happiness, and it never hurts to pick up a new one every so often. More tangibly, the smiles and hugs I got were worth the effort.
It wasn't always a bed of roses, however, (pun intended). Every year there were one or two ladies who broke my heart. The reason being, when I gave them their gifts, they cried. Sometimes, it was a case of their significant other having forgotten the special day. Sometimes they had no current significant other. Sometimes it was just the circumstances of an enforced separation, due to the demands of employment - or more recently, de-ployment (thanks to Baby Bush!). On one occasion, a young woman - a single mother who was a contract worker - not only cried when I gave her my gifts, she collapsed on the floor, sobbing. That brought tears to my eyes.
Most often, of course, the ladies didn't cry, but I can't count the times I heard these sad words: "This will be the only flower I get today." The strange thing is, I heard them not just from single women, but from those who were married or were in other serious, long-term relationships. It makes me wonder where my fellow men's heads are.
I'm retired now, and this year I won't be there with my flowers and candy. I hope the ladies will forgive my absence, and remember me fondly. Perhaps one of the other, younger guys will wise up, and step up to the task. It isn't that hard to let those with whom you spend all day know that they are special to you. No harder, really than doing it for the one to whom you go home at night.
So now I'll close this saying to my friends and family, I love you all, and wish you a happy and romantic Saint Valentine's Day.
Arrivederci.
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