Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue, Valentine’s Day is For Celebrating Friends, Too | The Loyola Phoenix (2024)

Writer Caroline Bell talks about how Valentine’s can be for friends too.

Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue, Valentine’s Day is For Celebrating Friends, Too | The Loyola Phoenix (1)

As someone who hasn’t had much interest in diving into the unpredictable waters of modern dating, I never felt a particular propensity for Valentine’s Day.

In my mind, the holiday was reserved for people who had significant others to dote on, the kind of people who exchanged flowers and boxes of chocolate.

However, about four years ago, I decided I didn’t need a significant other to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Instead, I’d dote on the people I loved the most in a way I knew would bring them joy.

Like so many other 18-year-old high school students struggling with senioritis, I was in desperate need of a pick-me-up. Valentine’s Day was right around the corner, and I had come across a new way to rag on my friends — giving them the most ridiculous, cringe-worthy valentines.

The night before Valentine’s Day, I printed out the most Tumbler-esque, low-quality, stupidly funny valentines Google and Pinterest had to offer. Imagine the woman from the Life Alert commercials poorly photoshopped onto a bright purple background with the words “help ive fallen for you and i cant get up” written in Comic Sans. Now imagine thirty of those distributed amongst a group of 17 and 18 year olds.

Needless to say, a bit of chaos — and a lot of fun — ensued. A valentine bearing the words “i’ve got a berning desire for you baby” featuring a picture of Senator Bernie Sanders found its way onto my AP Government teacher’s whiteboard where it hung with pride for the rest of the school year. A valentine requesting “a pizza dat ass” was confiscated by a band director during an after-school practice, with half-stifled laughter revealing its passage through the rows.

That day was undoubtedly the most fun I’d had in months. By handing out valentines that best matched my friends’ interests and personalities, I was reminded of how well we had come to know each other. Seeing the joy — or dismay, depending on how bad the joke was — on their faces was the best Valentine’s Day gift I could’ve received.

For me, this is what Valentine’s Day is all about — recognizing the relationships that mean the most, whether romantic or platonic. If I’ve learned anything from that experience, it’s that there’s no specific parameters around celebrating the holiday — it’s simply an opportunity to express love and gratitude in the most meaningful way.

Even though my high school friends and I no longer live within half an hour of each other, I’ve kept our tradition alive by mailing each of them a few valentines every year. My heart bursts with happiness when I receive texts confirming that the year’s valentines have arrived, along with photos of them hung in places of honor or added to the stack of the previous years’.

I’ve also become involved in multiple other friendship-centered Valentine’s Day festivities, including Galentine’s get-togethers and letter exchanges. One of my best friends and I even began the tradition of taking each other on a date — I’ve since taken her to an admittedly horrible stand-up comedy show and she took me to a nature museum. Our usual outings are completely predictable, so allowing ourselves to be spontaneous once a year has helped us try new things and grow closer in the process.

I look back fondly on previous years’ Valentine’s Day shenanigans because they’re proof that doting on loved ones can take many different forms — and yield a number of interesting outcomes. The outings and activities I’ve been a part of have been excuses to show my affections for some of the people I love the most, even if they haven’t been entirely related to the holiday itself.

It just goes to show that sometimes the best expression of love is a 3-by-4 inch piece of bright blue paper emblazoned with the words “r u trash cuz id like to take u out tonite.”

Feature image by Julia Soeder / The Phoenix

Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue, Valentine’s Day is For Celebrating Friends, Too | The Loyola Phoenix (2)

Caroline Bell

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Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue, Valentine’s Day is For Celebrating Friends, Too | The Loyola Phoenix (2024)

FAQs

Why roses are red violets are blue? ›

Many anthocyanins absorb light at different wavelengths (i.e. change colour) depending on the pH of the surrounding medium – this phenomenon is called a bathochromatic shift. This change in colour is reversible: as the pH changes from acidic to basic, the pigment colour alters from red to purple to blue.

What are the top three colors of roses sold on Valentine's Day? ›

Believe it or not, coming in second behind the red rose in popularity at Valentines Day is a bouquet of mixed colors, followed by purple, peach, yellow and pink. Of course, the absolute best kind of rose to give someone is the kind that will last – a living, growing rose bush that can be enjoyed for years.

How much money is spent on flowers on Valentine's Day? ›

The Society of American Florists has claimed that 250 million roses are produced for the holiday every year. The National Retail Federation estimates that people in the US will spend $2.6 billion on Valentine's Day flowers in 2024.

What flowers are usually sent or given on Valentine's Day? ›

Red roses symbolize passionate love and are a favorite for Valentine's Day. Other beautiful Valentine's Day flowers to send this year: Lilies. Tulips.

Who said roses are red, violets are blue? ›

We have all heard of the most famous poem of all that starts with ” Roses Are Red”- “Violets Are Blue”. The origins of the poem can be traced as far back to 1590 by Sir Edmund Spense and later in 1784 made famous by Gammer Gurton's Garland: The rose is red, the violet's blue, The honey's sweet, and so are you.

What kind of poem is "Roses are red, violets are blue"? ›

"Roses Are Red" is the name of a love poem and children's rhyme with Roud Folk Song Index number 19798.

Which color rose for best friend? ›

Yellow – Yellow roses are a symbol of friendship, joy, and caring. Yellow roses may be a good choice for a friend or if you are a little unsure of a relationship—perhaps if you have just started dating someone but don't feel like you are ready to give red roses.

What is the best color for Valentine's Day? ›

Pink flowers are often found in Valentine's Day bouquets - for good reason. A shade related to red, pink is a color of love. Thanks to the array of fresh, modern shades in today's arrangements, you can choose any color from a sophisticated blush pink to a nearly-neutral dusty rose to express your feelings.

What are the 2 colors most used during Valentine's Day? ›

Speaking of relationships, it's no secret that two is better than one—and the colors red and white are frequently side by side for Valentine's Day.

What do yellow roses mean? ›

Yellow roses are universally known as symbols of friendship, most people give them to each other for their birthdays or to celebrate the love between two good friends. Roses symbolise everything from “I love you” to “I care for our friendship” and colours vary from romantic red to energetic orange.

Who spends the most on Valentine's? ›

Spending differs by gender and age. Men spend more on Valentine's Day ($200+), while women usually spend less. Millennials are the biggest spenders, with those in that age group planning to spend around $300 on the holiday.

What is the most expensive Valentines Day flowers? ›

Juliet Rose (Price: Aprrox. $15.8 Million)

Its rarity and high demand make it one of the most expensive roses globally. It's like the Ferrari of the flower world!

Which flower to give a girl? ›

Roses symbolize love, prosperity, and affection in many cultures. Most women prefer either red or pink roses, so you may want to give a special girl in your life one of the more common-colored roses.

What percent of Americans skip Valentine's Day? ›

Just over half of all Americans (51%) say they have celebrated Valentine's Day before and will do so again this year. Women are more likely than men in the US (55% vs. 46%) to say this. Nearly three in ten Americans (29%) say they've celebrated Valentine's Day before but will skip it this year.

What do white roses mean? ›

White roses symbolize loyalty, purity, and innocence. "Since they represent these ideas, the white rose has also become the most popular flower to be seen at weddings," says Poulson. According to Poulson, they can also symbolize eternal love, a new start, and fresh beginnings.

Why are they called violets if they're blue? ›

The color violet comes from the flower name, which is rooted in the Latin viola. The violet is a plant with small flowers that vary in color from pale violet to dark blue, as well as white.

What causes the blue pigment in roses? ›

Compounds contained in many purple and blue flowers, such as gentian and platycodon, are delphinidin (also called blue pigment). The structures of these compounds are different only in the number of hydroxyls (OH) (Reference page: Flower colors can be changed freely). This small difference causes a difference in color.

Why is it violets are blue instead of purple? ›

No, violets are not blue; but the colour violet is closer to blue than it is to purple. And saying “violets are blue” fits the rhythm and rhyme much better. We can also ignore the fact that roses are not always red: they can be pink, yellow, white, or even orange.

Why do poems say violets are blue? ›

That verse must have been written by a man. As it turns out, it probably was. The earliest known version of this nursery rhyme was by the English poet Edmund Spenser in 1590. Men see blue where women see violet (or one of various shades of purple).

References

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