Calling all single ladies, there will be no more of this Valentine’s Day blues.
There is now an official holiday that shares all the same perks as Valentine’s Day, minus the significant other. Galantine’s day is a holiday that was created some years back for women to gallivant in their singleness together. This has become a more empowering time for ladies to enjoy the Valentine’s Day festivities.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, Galantine’s Day is a “day for women to celebrate their friendships with their lady friends.” Essentially, the meaning of Galantine’s Day is Valentine’s Day for the gals.
“Although Valentine’s Day is a ‘hallmark holiday,’ and a lot of the holiday is just for show, but Galantine’s day just gives off different vides. It’s all about empowering woman and celebrating friends”-Justin Macaques
The TV sitcom Parks and Recreation released an episode called “Galantine’s Day” (Season 2, Episode 16). Leslie Knope explained the made-up holiday Galantine’s Day: “Every February 13th, my lady friends and I leave our husbands and our boyfriends at home, and we just come and kick it, breakfast-style. Ladies celebrating ladies.”
Alyssa Snow started celebrating Galantine’s Day instead of Valentine’s Day after breaking up with a boyfriend of three years the day before Valentine’s Day. Snow said “Well we broke up the day before Valentine’s Day and I planned a beautiful picnic for us. I was sad that it was just going to go to waste.” Snow reached out to her friends regarding her breakup for support.
Three of Snow’s best friends came to her house, and spent the night with her because they were also single and didn’t have plans as well. On Valentine’s Day the four girls dressed up in their flowy dresses and sandals, and had the picnic that was originally designed for snow and her ex-boyfriend to share.
“We had a great time! We made fruity drink and had cake in the park. We just enjoyed our girly time together and frolicked through the park.” – Alyssa Snow
One of Snow’s friends, McKay Wells, said “Just being there for our friend was celebration enough. We realized how positive and encouraging spending that quality time together was. Especially on a day that isn’t designed for us singles.”
Keeping the tradition alive, Snow’s Galentine’s party has grown from four to nine girls. “Although not all of the girls are single, they still make it a point to celebrate their friendship in the most stereotypical girly way,” said Snow.
Across various different social media platforms, Galantine’s Day rose in popularity. Enough to where it is now recognized as a national holiday as of Feb. 10, 2021. The holiday is on the day before Valentine’s Day Feb. 13. The hashtag Galantine’s Day on Instagram has been used over 1.2 million times with women showcasing their parties, decorations, and food used to celebrate the day.
