Valentine's Day

Today is February 14, Valentine's Day. Not that it means so much to me anymore. When I was in grade school, it was a big deal. Unlike now, back then we didn't give everyone in our class Valentines, only the people we really liked. So Valentine's day was a competition to see who got the most cards and gifts. Of course, the popular girls, like the cheerleaders, always got lots of Valentines. The brainy types, like me, hoped somebody would give us a card or two. Usually, though, I did get a bunch of cards from my friends, and one or two from some boys who gave all the girls cards.

I will always remember the look on some of the kids' faces who didn't get any cards. I think that's why I started giving everyone in my class one. I didn't want to see anybody hurt like that. Some kids couldn't afford to give cards out. I didn't care. One of the girls felt bad because I gave her one and she didn't have one for me. I told her that didn't matter because I liked giving Valentines more than getting them. The next day her mother called my mother and told her that she had a wonderful daughter and should be proud of me. Mom said she was and that was the greatest Valentine I ever got.

There was one girl in our class who was very popular, but not very sensitive. She always liked to flaunt how many Valentines she got, and not just from our class. There were boys in the class ahead and the class behind who used to give her cards, too. And she was not shy about letting us all know it either. Having someone bragging about how many cards they got while there were some kids who didn't get any was terrible! I don't think it ever sank into that vain head of hers that she was being petty and hurtful.

Nowadays, parents and teachers make sure that every child gives a Valentine to and gets a Valentine from every classmate. No one gets hurt feelings. In a way, I think that's very good. Children have enough to worry about when growing up without having to worry if they are good enough or popular enough to get any Valentines.