Valentine's Day is the date when many "singles" complain about not being able to find their beloved, while many in relationships - about being part of a couple that imposes a sense of an unwritten law peering with a reproachful eye. What's more, it's the next holiday, with which the temples of the consumer society generously surround us in their tight grip, even before we've had a chance to breathe from the recent Christmas jampandrach with the search and provision of gifts. And many arrows of commercial cupids are sent directly in the direction of women, inviting them to prove their love through... boxer shorts in a heart letter or gift guides compiled by other women "for every modern gentleman", when they just want to repeat what wise people have said long ago - what works for everything, works for nothing.
I will not pretend that I know men and their world much better, because it is not true. That's why I asked my male acquaintances what they would really like to receive this...holiday. If they exist and are noted. The answers, understandably, ranged from the very thoughtful and serious, to the amusingly funny and mildly rude. But in general, it seems to me that the most important thing is - regardless of gender - we all actually value spending quality time together with a person who is truly dear and engaging to us.
But, without further ado - here are the answers (which, after doing a marathon search for answers on the Internet later, turns out to largely coincide with the opinions of men and given in many other places in the world..):
Movie evening in a "man's" style
Yes, this is where I get embarrassed, remembering the many evenings when my boyfriend gives in to my movie choice AGAIN without too much grumbling. I myself, understandably, have an iron conviction that my taste in films is by no means overly sweet or distinctly feminine, as I prefer the works of top European directors, laureates of the Cannes Film Festival, etc. But, let's be honest, - a good thriller or classic Clint Eastwood's pearls are given a chance too rarely (have you seen, for example, Eastwood's most recent film "Sully"? If it's a "men's" movie, then I'm ready to immediately move to the front of films of the opposite sex..)
Delicious home-cooked dinner with good wine/beer/whiskey/gin..or tea
Because a man, just like a sensible woman, will appreciate anything where your time, attention, imagination is invested and which is prepared just for him. We're not really that different in that respect, are we? Because even the simplest salad or hot bread tastes especially good, knowing that someone prepared it just for you.
Homemade coupons with the possibility of receiving a massage dinner, house cleaning, etc.
I never took coupons seriously (say, we are mature and values-savvy adults, not game shop members...) until I got them myself. Rest assured, it is a fantastic, indescribably great gift, because it allows you to extend the joy of the holidays for a long time after them, moreover, it gives you the opportunity to please the other when and how HE HIMSELF wants it most, and, as I have observed, it also brings a lot of joy and satisfaction to the "performer" or the giver of the gift.
Beloved woman in beautiful underwear
After all. We women, however, also have our own weaknesses and vulnerable "points" in men (I definitely know who can instantly "buy" my attention and affection...). So why not enjoy the feeling of being able to replace a whole list of expensive devices and valuable possessions... just with your elegant female presence? Perhaps radical feminists would have more than one thick word to say here. But I'm not a radical. And I'm guessing that those ladies who are are probably marching resolutely in an anti-Valentine's Day demonstration, waving posters of hearts unscathed by cupid's arrows, rather than learning how to congratulate the man they love.
Someone had to say it. And it's good that it is. A gift that, ideally, is also enjoyed and appreciated by its "giver".
In case you missed the previous answer. Think about it a little longer. However, it is very important for many men (and, I would like to believe, women too).
A warm/lovely/sexy surprise any other day
This is a response from men who believe that there is no need for a separate day to "celebrate" love. If you love, then show it, regardless of the date and the number of hearts on the store shelves. Quite logical, I must admit.
No, this is not a joke or an answer in the sauce of cynicism. Many really choose to live this day as a completely ordinary.. Tuesday. And not in spite of something or someone, not expressing their protest to the world of modern traditions, but quite simply because both parties in the couple feel (or, rather, don't feel) that way about this date and the meaning of Valentine's Day.
Here are the answers and suggestions from the gentlemen's perspective.
Whatever your choice and position is in the context of the fourteenth of February, I wish you to enjoy it properly and, even when you wake up on the fifteenth, nineteenth or twenty-third, celebrate your love as brightly as thousands, millions of hot hearts do today. Let it be beautiful!
Author of the article: Dārta Daneviča
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