Wally Spiers: ‘Every day should be Valentine’s Day’

If it is true, as the poet Ogden Nash once wrote, that “Husbands are indeed an irritating form of life,” then all husbands should embrace Valentine’s Day as a chance to get it right.

It’s hard to mess up. If you love someone, anything he or she does for you is a pleasure. And vice-versa.

It might seem like a lot of pressure, but you get a lot of leeway. Look at Valentine’s Day in that light. It’s the one day the entire retail world has only one thing in mind, to make sure everyone gets the perfect Valentine’s Day gift. Of course, everyone has a different idea of what the perfect gift might be or cost, but that’s part of the experience as well.

You can play it safe with dinner, flowers and candy. Or maybe even a special vacation. Those always work.

Or take a chance and write down how you feel for your love.

“At the touch of love, everyone becomes a poet,” Plato said. I don’t know if he was much of a lover, but I’m told he was a great philosopher so I’ll believe him.

I tried myself one year in a column telling my wife she was all the favorite things in my life, including a comfortable pair of blue jeans. She loved it although she pointed out that not every woman might like being called an old pair of jeans.

But an older friend told me that he completely missed the day but took my column to his wife and said that was exactly how he felt. I guess she bought it.

Even if it’s not your work, you can use poetry to charm your significant other. Heck, we spend millions of dollars on millions of cards each year and rarely write our own.

With that in mind I include this from Nash.

“I claim there ain’t

Another saint

As good as Valentine.”

Besides every day should be Valentine’s Day. At least every day should have the same spirit. It doesn’t have to be a special day to do something special for your love.

When my wife and I see or talk about something that we particularly want, one will say to the other to buy it and consider it an early Christmas, Easter, birthday, wedding or even National Potato Day present.

That takes away the guilt of buying stuff and really stretches the holidays. You really can have Christmas all year because when a holiday rolls around who is going to settle up accounts for presents bought and enjoyed earlier? Not me.

Valentine’s Day is like a Get Out of Jail Free card from Monopoly. It’s good health and wealth. It’s a fortune in feelings and a great thing for your life.

Sure, it’s a made-up holiday. But any day that involves giving and getting candy is a great day by me.

This story was originally published February 13, 2016 at 5:31 AM with the headline "Wally Spiers: ‘Every day should be Valentine’s Day’."