I have been thinking about Valentines Day the last couple of days. I want to send some Valentine's to two sweet little girls, but my mind is stuck on the idea of sending the kind of valentines we had in our childhood - not the kind that are available to kids today.
Do you remember these Valentine's books?
Full of different Valentines that you had to punch out - some had little sliding signs that fit in them that had the sentiment written on them. But the best part was the envelope. There were sheets of them in the books that you cut out and glued together. There was a place on the front for the "address" or person's name. Some even had a place marked out for the stamp.
We "Made Valentine's" for weeks out of these books before the actual event occurred!
Wonderful!
Valentine's Day when I was a kid back in the early 60's was a real big deal. Maybe it still is, but I remember when the announcement was made in school the excitement started.
In those days we did have a Valentine's Day party at school, but it was nothing like the parties kids have now. There were no treats of food, no party in the real sense of "party". Our party was decorating shoe boxes with crayons, or paper, cutting a whole in the top and placing the box on the corner of our desk.
This happened during the last hour of the day closest to Valentine's day, or on Valentine's day itself. Shortly before the bell rang to announce the end of the day, we were allowed to deliver our Valentines to the appropriate boxes.
It was a disorganized mad rush to plop your valentine in the receivers box, before the bell rang.
Unlike today, you didn't make a Valentine for everyone - just the students and friends you wanted to receive one. Thinking about that now, perhaps it was a bit harsh, but everyone who left school had a box full of Valentine's, I don't remember any child crying because they had none.
We would put on our winter clothes and head home after the school bell rang - our boxes wedged under our arms. The girls never made it all the way home, they often sat in a snowbank and opened their box and started opening their little envelopes with the Valentines inside. The excitement was more than one could be expected to stand - we just had to see which boys had given us a Valentine.
Of course the verses meant everything. If a boy's Valentine said a simple "Be My Valentine", that was nice - but it a boy's Valentine mentioned the word "Love" - well now that was the real deal!
I saved all my grade school Valentines for a very long time. I don't have them now - but I sure wish I did.
Yesterday while I was out shopping I started my search for the "Real Valentine" - the kind like the ones in these old books. All I found were boxes of Valentines, with a few different Valentines in the same theme. Not what I want.
So the hunt is on.
You will let me know if you see any around, won't you?
Hi Dale; do you have Indigo/Chapters store where you live? They have the old-fashioned set of Valentines in a book for $6.99. At least, my downtown Chapters did when I was there last week.
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