Valentine’s Day in a Man’s Eye:
See the Day from His Point of View
before Making Your Plans
Men and women tend to view Valentine’s Day in completely different ways. Generally, women celebrate Valentine’s Day because they enjoy expressing their love for their significant other. Men celebrate it to try to give their partner what she wants. But before you sit back and anticipate the romantic night that your husband or boyfriend sets up for you this Valentine’s Day, first try and see the holiday through his eyes.
From a recent survey taken on how men view Valentine’s Day, numbers show that men think women want gifts and romantic gestures from their man to make them feel special for the holiday. But when asked how men view Valentine’s Day themselves, most guys did not think of it as a holiday to get gifts or to do anything extra other than spend time with the person they love. This difference in viewing how to spend the day can cause controversy if women aren’t specific in telling their partner how they really want to spend Valentine’s Day.
When women aren’t clear about what they need in order to feel special and loved, it can lead to disappointment if she just expects her partner to know. Results show that men usually have to guess what their wife or girlfriend want for a valentine gift or a night out, but if their choices aren’t as romantic as she had hoped, it can lead to her believing that he doesn’t share the deep feelings that she has for him.
As far as gifts go, many women buy their husband or boyfriend a present for Valentine’s Day that they have put a lot of thought into, and tend to expect the same in return. Yet when women want something sentimental for a Valentine’s Day gift and don’t offer up any ideas, it only becomes more difficult for a man to choose an appropriate gift, since they generally aren’t as romantic as women. If she had hoped for a new cookbook for couples but he buys her the latest Michael Crichton novel, it just won’t have the same effect.
Seeing Valentine’s Day from a man’s eye, remember that if you want to do something special for the holiday, you may want to be blunt rather than expect surprises. If your husband or boyfriend buys you candy and flowers, even if it happens that the candy isn’t your favorite and the flowers looked like they were the first kind he saw when he stepped foot in the store, he’s trying. And his trying is what shows his love for you, not the gifts.
So before you make your plans for Valentine’s Day, or tell your significant other that the plans are up to him, keep these things in mind. Get him to understand if Valentine’s Day is a special day of love and intimacy, but don’t try to make him have the same feelings if he doesn’t. He loves you, but his feelings probably aren’t easily expressed by romantic gestures or gifts. They’re expressed in the way he cares in trying to make you happy.
This Valentine’s Day survey was taken by both single and married men from ages 26-32.
