My Perfect Valentines Day Gift

Flowers, chocolates, candles, teddy bears, jewelry and a romantic dinner at my favorite restaurant are all on my wish list but not at the top. These are easy crowd pleasers but quite generic. A token of his love is what I am really hoping to receive. Something heartfelt, sincere and something which requires thought. Giving me a Valentines Day gift that takes the effort of walking down the seasonal aisle at Walgreens is not exactly what I have in mind.

Will I tell him this? No. When he asks what I want, will I give him explicit instructions and details? Never.Why? Because I want HIM to want to spend the time, devote the thought and take the initiative to find and buy the perfect gift. The present that proves his love, shows how well he knows me and how much he cares.

My boyfriend often complains about the amount of money he spent on me during Christmas and New Years and uses this as justification to skimp on Valentines Day. My reaction to this strategy is to throw a temper tantrum, the likes of which you normally see from a five year old, and demand that he not only purchase a gift that expresses his love but also a second gift expressing a sorrowful apology for making such dreadful comments.

The irony is, and I will deny it if anyone should ever ask, I do not care what kind of present he buys me. He need not spend a dime on lacy lingerie, sweet milk chocolate hearts, sparkling jewelry or luxurious lotions. What I really want is a hug. A kiss. A whisper of love, lust or even support. I want to feel cherished, adored or at least heard! If he could simply understand how hungry I am for his affection then he would know how easy it is to please me.

Instead, I will say, I don't know, whatever you think is special when he asks me again what I want for Valentines Day. I will silently crave the things that money cannot buy while he huffs and puffs his way through stores purchasing the gifts money can buy. He will feel proud and act pompous as he hands me various goodies and I will smile at his efforts and thank him yet all the while wishing he'd saved his money and given me something from the heart, not Wal-Mart.

I write this knowing that my boyfriend will never see or read it so its' publication does not threaten my desire for him to figure it out himself. But I do understand how unfair it may seem to men since they may very well not understand out of ignorance rather than intent. So I write this in the hopes that others will read it and couple their chocolate candies with a hand-written poem for the women they love.