Unfortunately, my current feelings about Valentine’s Day have been tempered by my conviction that the day has been hijacked by Hallmark, Tele-florists, and various candy companies. However, I do remember a time in my life when Valentine’s Day was something I eagerly anticipated and shared with others who felt the same excitement. In fact, I remember one specific Valentine’s Day in the early 1940’s. The setting was a three roomed school located in rural Northwest Indiana, and the circumstances qualify for the “Particularly Memorable Valentine’s Day” mentioned as a possible writing topic.
My first year in school was full of learning experiences that were unintended and far more significant than gaining the ability to read from the Dick and Jane series. What I recall most were the experiences and insights gained while sharing my days in the classroom and on the playground with a group of peers from a variety of ethnic and economic backgrounds. Most of my classmates were like me, from families who lived in comfortable rural farm homes and who were not lacking in basic economic necessities. Others appeared to be denied those same basic amenities. Unkempt appearances, dirty clothes ( often worn day after day), obvious signs of malnutrition, and subtle evidence of child abuse shared my cozy classroom. I’m sure that having a heated environment and indoor plumbing at school, especially in February, was a unique and pleasant diversion for some.
On this particular Valentine’s Day, all evidence of social and economic differences disappeared because from our common Valentine box, located at the front of the classroom, Valentines were distributed to everyone, even to those too poor to contribute to the contents of the box. I especially recall a frail Italian boy, Jimmy, who frequently smelled of his breakfast wine and always of soiled clothing. I remember vividly how he became animated and how a smile appeared among the care lines and smudges of grime on his little boy face as Valentines were delivered to his student desk by the appointed student cupids.
Some of us were fortunate to have Mothers who purchased large packets of Valentines that far exceeded the number required to give one to each of our classmates. The excess made it possible for everyone to receive an equal number of the greeting cards, even if some were too poor to contribute Valentines of their own. No one noticed that some of the class had not signed any of the little cards. It was a wise teacher who made certain that no one felt uncomfortable in their poverty. No one was identified as poor or rich. We were just children celebrating a holiday without regard to our differences. In our innocence, we captured the essence of the holiday without the benefit of Hallmark, Tele-florists, or Whitman’s samplers.