A love letter from your galentine, Becky Armstrong.  

Dear Sisters,

Valentine’s Day: love it or hate it, it’s here. I used to be an all guns blazing hater of Valentine’s day, even when I wasn’t single the thought of it would fill me with impending doom. I don’t think there is anything quite as vomit-inducing as the tower of stuffed toys stocked by the Triangle Sainsbury’s checkouts. They stare at you as you buy your veggie sausages as if to say ‘Biological clock ahum?’, ‘Who’s validating you though? Really?’. This year the range is complete with a tortoise which sings when you squeeze its leg. Please don’t listen to the imaginary things that tortoise is saying to you. He lies.

Toys aside, I love the whole Valentine’s week! Or formerly known as Valentine’s, since I, alongside many others, now prefer the term Galentine’s (thanks Parks and Rec). I think I started loving Galentine’s-Formerly-Known-As-Valentine’s (GFKAV) when I began to dissect the hierarchies of ‘Love’ we feel should play out in our lives. Romantic love is great, I am by no means slamming it. But I feel we put a scarily big emphasis on its necessity in our lives – ironically much to the detriment of many romantic relationships, as we go through partner after partner desperately searching for the perfect ‘one’. Where is the ‘one’? You are the ‘one’. No one is ever going to understand your depths and levels and complexities in the same way that you are. Not to mention the fact that this emphasis on romance is a clever little tool of the ever-hungry beast that is capitalism, breathing down our necks as it probes us to buy into the idea that we aren’t good enough as we are.  

So how will I be spending this GFKAV’s Week? Well, I will be celebrating all the people I appreciate and love because the truth is there has and will be many ‘loves of my life’- my mum, my friends, my cat dare I say it! As well as a sweet evening of food, films and wine with some of my favourite people, I will be jetting off for to Rome for the weekend with my favourite honorary gal pal (my brother), ironic I know. We will be eating lots of gelato and pizza, butchering Italian vocab and enjoying each other’s company. We will not be moaning about our ‘tragic’ status as singletons.

So, to conclude lovely ladies. Show the people in your lives a little love and appreciation this GFKAV’s Day!

Big Love,

B x

P.S. The only toy acceptable to buy your partner is the kind that vibrates and if you’re looking for some single lady inspo, check out @theslumflower for tips on how to harness your greatness!

Illustration by Maegan Farrow.