Valentine's Day According to Me

I’m not a fan of Valentine’s Day. I like the idea of celebrating love, but I see this particular holiday as a commercial event that leaves out those who have no boyfriend/girlfriend/lover/partner/spouse. My cynical view of Valentine's Day (I call it VD) probably stems from being a single mom for 12 years. Every VD, I would go to work, dreading the parade of flowers that would march past me en route to my female co-workers. By the end of the day, mine was one of very few unadorned desks.

When I met the man who is now my husband, he gave me a card for our first Valentine’s Day. He has a habit of purchasing cards, modifying the message, and watching for my reaction to see if I catch his clever edits. Seven years ago, we started giving each other traditional Valentines. I now receive a dozen red roses, along with a heart-shaped box of candy, and one of his goofy cards. I give him a box of expensive chocolates. (This year, I gave him a huge jar of jelly beans because I felt it was time to shake things up.)

In spite of my cynicism towards Valentine’s Day, I appreciate that I have someone special in my life. I enjoy feasting on chocolate and breathing in the aroma of roses. But in a few days, the heart-shaped box will contain empty crumpled paper. (My chocolate is always the first to go, and it goes fast). The roses will soon droop in their vase. What I celebrate every day is that when I go to sleep at night and wake up every morning, my sweet, unromantic husband is right there next to me. No commercial holiday can make that blessing any more meaningful.

Facebook is My Friend

Like millions of others, I’ve become a fan of Facebook (FB), which I joined about 18 months ago. As is the case with many newcomers to FB, I signed up for just about every application. I got to super poke, give good karma, plant trees, give sea creatures, and accept all sorts of lovely things. The problem is that the darn thing consumed too much of my time. Now I use it mostly for connecting with people.

I love FB because I have made hundreds of new friends from all over the world. Most of those are people I’ve made through Common Tables (www.commontables.org), an interfaith organization for whom I do pro bono PR. It’s easy to befriend those who think the world would be a better place if more of us came to understand and honor that which makes us difference from one another and celebrate the things we have in common.

There are several Monaghans (and one Monahan) on FB, who are friends, simply because we share the same last name, but they’ve become great new pals. A number of my friends on FB are people I actually know. Just in the past two months, I’ve reconnected with dozens of former co-workers and classmates I thought I’d never see again.

Those who don’t get social media consider it a waste of time. As I've already admitted, it can be, but it’s also brought me in touch with people I dearly love. As a public relations professional, I’ve realized that social media is a tool I must embrace and use frequently. It cannot replace person-to-person contact, but it can enhance existing connections and help form new ones.

I’m no longer super-poking or doing any of the other fun things on FB which I so enjoyed, but I continue to build my network and make new friends. If you’re on Facebook, feel free to "friend" me. You can also follow me on Twitter – www.twitter.com/hauteflash.