Stories of Valentines Days' Past

Happy Valentine's Day! I'll cut straight to the chase and say that in honor of today, it's only fitting that I write about my past experiences with this consumer-based holiday, right?

This year is my fourth Valentine's Day with my boyfriend, Darell. And while you would think I have three years' worth of Vday romantic dates...

I don't. 

Haha. Let's just say that Darell and I haven't always had the best Valentine's Days together...

He believes that it's just a day that promotes consumerism and doesn't believe in going all out for it, and for two years, that is exactly what he did.

Valentine's Day 2011: This was our first Valentine's Day together! I was a junior in high school, and he was in his first year of college. His car was in the shop at the time and I didn't drive at the time (not until I was in college myself). I'm a hopeless romantic and had high expectations for the day, but I was disappointed when Darell didn't do what is typically expected on Valentine's Day--fancy expensive date and flowers. However, as I look back on it now, I realize that he actually did something pretty sweet for me. He took a bus from his house all the way to my high school and walked me home that day. I was honestly a jerk that day and got mad that he didn't do anything "special," but what he did was when you really think about it; it just wasn't what I wanted or expected.

2012: I actually don't remember this day too clearly; I believe that Darell simply picked me up from school and took me home. We couldn't hang out for some reason that I don't remember, but all I remember was that we ended up fighting because for the second year in a row, Darell hadn't lived up to my expectations of Valentine's Day. (I'm so demanding and selfish, huh? Haha.)

2013: Okay, so this year was different than all the rest. I had figured that Darell was going to visit me for Valentine's Day, but I just didn't know when or what he was going to do. However, when I walked out of my last class for the day on the day before Vday (he was working the next day), there he was, standing with a bouquet of roses in his hand! My heart had dropped and I was so shocked to see him there! Darell isn't the type to do grand gestures like that, so I was so surprised at what he did! I remember Darell telling me that he was so terrified he thought his heart was going to burst, but once he saw me walk out of my class he didn't notice anything else. And honestly, right then and there, that Valentine's Day was officially my best and most favorite yet. We went to Flame Broiler for dinner before doing devotions together and going to my school's worship service together. It was a beautiful evening.

Us before the worship service. This was a great night<3

So what is happening for us this Valentine's Day?

I don't even know. I'm not even sure if we're seeing each other today, but that's okay! I've learned to accept that he's not a romantic and that you don't need one day to be romantic. You should be trying to please your significant other all the time, not just on one day. Will Darell be doing anything for me this year? Who knows! But follow me on Instagram because if something does happen, I'll probably document it for you.

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! I hope you all have a great day, no matter what you're doing [: