Valentine's Week: Will you be mine? Celebrate love with Propose Day 2025

The second day of Valentine’s Week, February 8th is an underrated date that gives people the perfect opportunity to express their love and commitment to their loved ones.

From elaborate dinner date proposals to whispered confessions of love, this day encapsulates all that is beautiful about the week leading up to Valentine’s Day 2025. There is no definite beginning to this particular day much like there is no definite beginning to the long-lasting history of love confessions, and this makes Propose Day that much more special.

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According to Taylor & Hart’s article, the first recorded illustrations of proposing started in the penny papers of the 1800s where suitors would kneel to appease their upset lovers. In the 1920s during the silent film era, kneeling on one knee signified a proposal. This became a pop culture staple and built the "tradition" of kneeling while proposing.

The beauty of Propose Day is that it is not born from a definite origin. This gives couples the perfect chance to subvert societal expectations and choose their own traditions of love. Long gone is the necessity for men to be the only ones to propose first, and rings do not have to have a diamond to last forever.

Here are some gestures through which you can make Propose Day a wonderful celebration of love for couples, friends, and family:

• Write a love letter or poem: Letters are a wonderful way to propose to a loved one. Whether they are a crush, romantic partner, or spouse. Write a letter filled with all the things you love about them, or write a poem expressing the depth of your feelings.
• Prepare a candlelit dinner: If cooking is one of your strong suits, prepare a delicious dinner for your partner with all of their favourite dishes, or order in and spruce up the dining table with a few roses, candles, and an aesthetic tablecloth to surprise your partner and show up for them. If acts of service are your love language, this is the best way to show your love.
• Plan a fun trip: Valentine’s Week celebrates all kinds of love, not just romance. So you can plan a fun weekend trip with your friends and cover Sunday, February 9th’s Chocolate Day by gifting each other delicious treats while on the trip. Don’t forget to tell your friends how much they mean to you.
• Go on a date by yourself: If you're single and feel nervous about going out on a date by yourself, you can treat yourself at home to a self-care day by resting and taking it easy. This also provides an opportunity to reaffirm some self-love.

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If you’re feeling stumped for words to say to your special person, here are some love confessions that might make them weak in the knees for you.

• “You are my moon in the darkest night, I hope you will keep shining your guiding love and light on me.”
• “You are the most precious, genuine gem in a world full of counterfeits.”
• “I want you to stand by me and give me your love, and I will do the same for you.”

For millennia, humanity has been fascinated with the concept of love and preserving it. Valentine's Week is proof of the larger human condition of loving unconditionally and celebrating loved ones unabashedly, so go ahead and celebrate it with those you love - including yourself.