How to embody Leslie Knope today and celebrate Galentine’s Day
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February 13, 2015
While Valentine’s Day celebrates romantic love, a special holiday exists the day before to celebrate the single most important love in the world. Created by the hit TV comedy Parks and Recreation, Galentine’s Day is a day dedicated to strong, independent, female friend love. In the episode, Leslie Knope dedicates a day for female friendship. Since the episode’s premiere, friends everywhere celebrate Galentine’s Day as not only a homage to the show, but as a day to forget the disappointment of celebrating Valentine’s Day alone.
In a world where romantic love dominates through an over-abundance of romantic comedies, dating sites, and hook-up apps, a day dedicated to non-romantic love proves a godsend. Female love, the rarest love of all, certainly deserves this day. Getting together with fellow singles helps ease the pain and loneliness on the day of love. On Galentine’s Day, friendship matters most.
Great friends juniors Darby Franks, Madeline Schohan, and Adrian Vivona celebrate Galentine’s Day by exchanging delicious treats and cards with one another.
Step one: obviously, gather the single friends. Fill the room with confident single ladies for the best effect; and avoid whining about single life, past crushes, and terrible relationships. Today celebrates friendship, so strive to have a nice day out with the gang. Galentine’s Day should never involve mourning over a lack of romance, so to abstain from the typical pre-Valentines Day sorrow, redirect those thoughts of inadequacy into celebration to make all the difference.
Step two: Make a plan, preferably involving pedicures, a fancy dinner, and shopping.
Step three: Spend the whole day celebrating each other. To quote Parks and Recreation, “treat yo’ self.” Forget all worries and pamper each other. People enjoy retail therapy for a reason.
Step four: Give thoughtful gifts to all the platonic friends that make being single bearable. Relive middle school and give friendship bracelets, or make friendship cards and thank the people who have stood by during tough times.
Remember the main goal: celebrating friends. While family members and significant others have official holidays of celebration, we rarely celebrate friendship, and rarely do we thank those who love us in that way. Galentine’s Day proves not just a humorous holiday off a comedy show; it emulates a real holiday for celebration and fills a niche long left empty.
