Tuesday, February 11, 2014 :: Durex Valentine Day Vow
Valentine’s Day is a day where you declare your affection for someone special. I think it’s truly amazing how a holiday can transform when you embrace the deeper meaning behind this special occasion. For us who are interested, you can google the real significance behind Valentine’s Day. Not going to bore you with details here because it is quite the long story.For me, Valentine’s Day is always a very special occasion that I hold close to my heart. Because on this day, I look forward to find the card/letter delivered to me in amazing ways. Although John and I stay together, he still ensures I receive a card on this special day and make sure I find it in places at the most unexpected situations.
Many may ask me the significance of receiving a card/letter from my loved one when there are always modern means of communication like declaring your love on social media. Let me tell you from a woman’s point of view; cards (and by that I mean one that is written from the bottom of your heart and not a simple one-liner) are testaments in history of a man’s love for his partner. These are things we can hold on to and re-read them again and again in time to come. Nothing ever is more powerful and fulfilling than receiving a handmade / handwritten card written by a loved one (in my case, John) which he recalls his favourite moments with me, tell me the things he love about me, thank me for staying by his side, how his life had changed after he met me, reaffirm his love for me and words of gratitude.
When I came to know about the “Valentine Vow”, I decided to blog about this because I think about how writing a card have manifested into our life and became part of our Valentine Vow to each other over the years; I wish to tell our story. If you have not heard of this widely popular campaign, it is a movement where Durex want partners to vow to do something meaningful for their partners, in conjunction with Valentine’s Day. Let's be realistic. Remember and appreciate the moments of love that you have shared with your special one. So make your #valentinevow to keep your love protected :*)
Over the years in the midst of searching high and low for the perfect card, I always begin to consider what we have been through together and there is really no other card that really fits our situation every. single. time. There are times when I can take up to an entire day going from shop to shop in my quest to look for the perfect card. When I am not satisfied with my finds, I turn to hand-making it myself – something like scrapbooking but much horrible because I have to race against time every.single.time. Heck, it’s the depth of content that matters.
*Inhale deeply* So this is a collection I have never shown anyone. Mostly because they are so private to me and how corny it gets haha. But then again, it is always okay to err on the side of cheesiness (who else would you talk to like that!?) and y’know simply because we women like this kind of stuff. So here goes…
And Valentine’s Day is the perfect time for us to set the wrongs right. Obviously, the man is always in the wrong.
There are times when he thinks I am still the baby girl 3 years ago, obsessed with cute teddy bears…
…but never mind the card, what matters is how authentic the content is.
Even on birthdays, I get a card. I am quite the simple person, never chasing after the belief that the most expensive gift will make me happy; the most extravagant giver loves me the most. I find myself touched to tears by cards, not by gifts. I guess my language of love is words of affirmation and quality time. For John, his language of love is always through acts of service (like doing housework) and physical touch. It is very common at night for John to reach out to me, squeeze a hand through under my head, pull me close then give me a long hug from behind when he is sleeping soundly. When he sleeps, he sleep like a dead log through. So it always amazes me over and over again how instinctively he can embrace me and murmur “i love you, Tricia” in my ears all when he is sound asleep. I guess you now have a brief idea of how vastly different we are. Even though his language of love is different from mine, he has learnt throughout the years the importance of a heartfelt card to me and even though he sucks terribly at writing be it handwriting (i assure you his handwriting is amazingly illegible) or expressing his emotions (both in written and verbal ways, he cannot string a sentence of coherent words together I promise you), it had became a vow for us to write each other cards on special occasions – an unspoken vow we learnt through time and love.
(Wherever the carrot is pointing, I don’t know 25th comes first or BLESSED)
Man this is super corny…………
This is errr too private haha :/ But you get the gist. This is where we can re-read the card in years to come and remember the memories that were etched in our hearts before all the storms of marital rage come rushing through. Few days back, we sat down and read these cards again and realized how emotionally far we have drifted apart because of commitments and work throughout the years. It is true as you grow older, your commitments get heavier and some things in your life just have to change or be sacrificed. John then made a promise that he will bring back the old times, and to ask for me to have faith in him :*)
So this year, I am going back to hand-making a card for him from my old collection of scrapbooking materials (got to upgrade them soon yaw).
I hope my post will help score one on the women’s side ;) If you are someone like me but don’t know how to reach out to your partner, maybe letting them read it from another woman’s point of view will help them to come to a realization that their testament of love can come in the form of a heartfelt letter or card on the special day :)
Before I end this, make your #valentinevow HERE on this page and stand a chance to win a getaway for 2. Also something for both you and your partner to enjoy laughs on a bed, here is a VIDEO about Valentine’s Day being misunderstood from a (stupid) man’s point of view haha. Man…men……Amen to you, man.
For us, it is the assurance that we will always stick together come what may. Love is a choice to commit to something, someone, no matter what obstacles or temptations stand in the way.
With Love,For me, I promise I will always walk in your path, wherever you may be. x
Tricia
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