Valuing a Simpler Valentine’s Day
I have fond memories of sitting around the kitchen table with my mother and sister, making Valentines for our friends and aunties, cutting out flocked roses from an enormous book of wallpaper samples, and adding doilies and crepe paper ruffles. Our mom encouraged handmade cards for every occasion, especially Valentine’s Day, a tradition I delight in upholding. For me, Valentine’s Day is about connection and affection, not empty signifiers of romantic love.
Valentine’s Day is a bit like hot chocolate: it warms the heart, but it can quickly become sickening if you overdo it. In terms of ecological impact, it can sometimes be a disaster. Simple, sincere, and responsible gestures make a more lasting impact than a bouquet of roses grown in Ecuador or Colombia, or a box of chocolate made from cocoa that originated in a narrow band near the equator in West Africa, South America, or Southeast Asia.
Give your love flowers, but instead of a cut bouquet that has generally traveled hundreds of miles, is drenched in pesticides, and dies in a few days, gather flowers from your own garden or choose a living arrangement, such as one of the splendid container gardens available at the Valentine’s Extravaganza!
Or ignore high-pressure advertising that says the only way to show love is to buy something shiny and new, and instead make a loving gesture straight to the planet. Which is why, on February 14, when the tide is out, you’ll find me on the beach picking up litter, my little Valentine to the Earth.
Nancy Englund
2026-2026 President