The Good Ol' Valentine's Days

"Love is that first feeling you get before all the bad stuff gets in the way." ~Some little kid

I generally complain about Valentine's Day, like any other single girl in America. But this year, instead of my complaining, I thought I'd share the other thought that always comes to mind every year....how much more fun was Valentine's Day when I was a kid!? So here we go, Valentine's Day 5th Grade.....circa 1995.


First off...relationships (if you can call them that) were better in the 5th grade. I mean really......they were easier, there was no pressure, none of the cute boys were married....see? Easier!

Your entire relationship was based on holding hands on the playground, always picking the other person first for kickball, passing notes in class and occasionally being brave enough to call the person on the phone. Why did things have to get complicated? I sort of miss that 5th grade state of mind. Because the relationships were better, the Valentine's Days were better. I feel the need to share a few Valentine's Day stories from better times.

The first will involve me and my 5th grade boyfriend. We'll call him FirstValentine. I remember him bringing me candy and a teddy bear and a card....all on one Valentine's Day! I haven't gotten something that good in the fifteen years since! Remember those card machines that were at like Wal-Mart and you could design them yourself? Yep....it was one of those. Creative and sweet. I still have that card. Like I say, they just don't make Valentine's Day like they used to.

Another example involves two of my friends from my 5th grade class. We'll call them Tom Cruise and the cheerleader. Tom Cruise liked the cheerleader, but she didnt' seem so sure. In order to win her over, he hand-made her a gift.....it was made of Dallas Cowboys fabric (her favorite team) and ended up in the shape of Gumby. I still think back to that and about how cute it was that he made her something from scratch, focusing on what she liked. Sigh.....I have never received my own Gumby, but I frequently remind the cheerleader about hers.

Next fond memory, in 5th grade, everyone had to get a valentine from everyone else. Now, of course, not everyone had to get Gumby dolls or teddy bears, but everyone at least got one of those little valentine's that came in a box from everyone else in class. This equated to getting like 15 cards! Woo hoo!

And last thing, there was a party that everyone was invited to, whether you had a date or not. You didn't have to worry about being the third wheel. Everybody's mom brought junk food and cokes and we all watched a movie. Again, no pressure, no judgment, just enjoying the holiday. Yep, those were the good ol' days.

Oh, and you may wonder what happened to my friends? Apparently great Valentine's Day gifts don't equate to happily ever after for 5th grade romances. Tom Cruise lives in another state with his wife and beautiful baby. The cheerleader lives in a different small town with her two awesome kiddos. FirstValentine ended up in love with his high school sweetheart and they had two adorable kids of their own. We stayed good friends over the years until he passed away a year and a half ago. He was always there for me.....he did all of my home ec assignments and was the only reason that class didn't kill my gpa! I think of him often now, and I have always thought of him on Valentine's Day.

So this year, instead of complaining, I think I might go buy myself some junk food, look for my own gumby doll, watch a movie, and pretend I'm back in 5th grade again.