By Lucy Matthews | Contributor
Love season. ItÔÇÖs that sickly time of year where the colour red cannot be avoided and you are fronted with hearts and declarations of affection in any shop you dare to venture into. In a normal year, couples would celebrate their unique bonds by booking out restaurants weeks in advance and rushing to florists to get their significant others their favourite bouquet of flowers. Last year, however, ValentineÔÇÖs day took a slightly less romantic turn when COVID-19 decided it wanted to join in the loving celebrations, blessing couples and families with work-at-home regulations and what felt like a never-ending national lockdown. Unavailable to get teddies, boxes of chocolate and all the usual paraphernalia that comes with February 14th, those who celebrate the festival had to revert to new means of showing affection towards their lover.
Some embraced the challenge of COVID third wheeling their Valentine celebrations by going on socially-distanced walks, and having picnics in the crisp February sun. Others appreciated love amongst the whole family after going through the trials of 2020, putting children in charge of the ValentineÔÇÖs day activities and celebrating family love. Last year, the day of love proved to be particularly challenging for those who lost their loved ones throughout the pandemic, and due to the strict social distancing measures. Social media was a saving outlet for millions of couples and families throughout the pandemic, and ValentineÔÇÖs day proved to be no different. Zoom dates which saw couples getting dressed up to sit in front of their partner on camera for meals made digitally, and creative messages and displays of love online, made the romantic holiday more bearable.
After 111 million booster vaccinations issued in the UK and the complete easing of lockdown restrictions in England in the next few weeks, February 14th this year will see couples venture back into steak houses, and enter jewellers to get that necklace their partner has been reminding them of sneakily for the past months. Actively showing your affection and dedication is securely and safely back on the cards and we can finally say goodbye to zoom calls with loved ones across the country and socially distanced valentineÔÇÖs day walks. Whilst 2022 renders love back on the table, there is a newfound appreciation for those we surround ourselves with after the year where COVID made it harder than ever before to be with those we love. Despite being a single day of the year to show that special someone how much they mean to you, the pandemic has made us grateful for every day we get to spend with our loved ones. Therefore, despite being the worst third wheel there ever could be, February 2021 was perhaps the most loving ValentineÔÇÖs day of them all.
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