February 14

February 14, every year, it seems the world loses its senses and falls into a spiral of red and pink, roses and candy hearts. These sacchariferous and artificial candy hearts in soft pastel shades of pink, purple, and red are ingested by lovers near and far. These chemical hearts are meant to convey what the real heart yearns to say. These cute little candy hearts say “Be Mine” or “Sweetheart” or “I Love You” but what they really mean is that our love equates to candied chemicals produced by the million in cold grey factories. Saint Valentine wanted for lovers to be close and affectionate, tender and boundless, yet today we’ve made a business out of heartbreaks and artificial relationships. No longer is a profound conversation valued by lovers; it is now through short pixelated messages that we profess our love. It seems like this clouded and sugar-coated version of love exists to cushion us from heartbreak. It is much easier to purchase a box of candy hearts than to be vulnerable and give someone the key to the real heart. The real heart relentlessly pumps blood through our veins despite physical hardship. The real heart is made of layers of muscles strengthened through time. Our hearts will continue to beat despite being removed from our body when they are simply guided by our loving souls. Candy hearts are dainty poisons that introduce false feelings into our minds. They make us feel a tainted sense of love that does not exist outside of February 14.