One day in January 2018, recently arrived in the USA as a French expat, I wandered in the alleys of our local grocery store in the Valentine’s section when I came across a card with a message that was new to me: ‘Happy Galentine’s day!’
As a love professional myself and an avid learner of all things cross-cultural (especially since studying for one of my M.A degrees in teaching French as a Foreign Language where I followed a fascinating course with plenty of students from all over the globe), I naturally began searching for more information on the topic and… how was I going to be happy about this discovery!
Keep the article at hand on your Pinterest boards by pinning it! (top left bottom on this picture ;-))
In this article you will find:
the result of my research on the topic
some fun facts about it
In other related upcoming articles, I will share with you:
Why Galentine’s and other female-only events are much needed in our society
How you can celebrate Galentine’s, stress-free!
(please subscribe in the box below the article to know when these articles appear on the blog ;-)).
What is Galentine’s day?
The tone is set!
This celebration idea comes from an NBC American comedy television series called Parks and Recreation., a TV series that aired for 16 years (2009 to 2015) . It also received several awards and nominations.
This episode where Galentine’s is mentioned aired on February 11, 2010. People have appreciated it and received positive reviews and this fictional holiday has started to become celebrated *for real*!
As the character explains, it’s all about “women celebrating women”. Pretty fantastic, I know!
In the above extract, they are having breakfast, but you can easily change this as I explain in this article here How you can celebrate Galentine’s, stress-free! (subscribe below to know when this article appears on the blog ;-)).
To sum it up it’s an annual gathering (and a fake holiday) just before Valentine’s (that also celebrates the different people you care about in the USA-see article' ‘Why Valentine’s is not just for lovers’ here-subscribe below to know when this article appears on the blog ;-)), just to show your lady friends -single, in a relationship, married or in a ‘it’s complicated’ mode- that you are still there for them (if you think you do not see your friends enough since you’re in a relationship/married, if you’re single and this is how you feel about your friends who are in a couple/may have a family too, well here’s an occasion to reconnect and fully realized how much GOOD it is when you are surrounded with same-minded women!)
What do you do on Galentine’s day?
Well there can be many options here obviously when you think about gathering women, but basically a Galentine’s party includes these elements :
eating,
drinking,
doing some fun activities together
talking
being inspired
expressing gratitude and appreciation
taking pictures to remember this special moment!
(I’m sure I am forgetting many things but hey, drop me your ideas in the comments below and I’ll add them! I love the idea of you and I collaborating, makes it funnier!)
For some. it can be an alternative to Valentine’s day and sometimes it can also have a stronger feminist vibe-but not necessarily.
In the series, the character says the 3 last feminist sentences that are on this visual I created for y’all! (please pin it on Pinterest, and share it on all your favorite social media-but please do not edit it)
Another part of Galentine’s celebration is about gift-giving to your friend. Yup.
In the series, it’s about weird gifts:
hand-crocheted flower pens
a mosaic portrait of each of the friends made from the crushed bottles of their fave diet sodas
a needle pillow with their face on it and the lead headline from a newspaper article from the day they were born
Seriously, don’t you think that it is too weird?
But how fun it could be to find/create gifts like these! Truly UNIQUE for sure, ma cherie!
Speaking of so weird but with an absolutely darling intention is the ‘personalized 5,000 words essay on why [they] are all so awesome’.
(Don’t worry, I’ll help you save some time if you want to organize a ladies’ party-Galentine’s specific or not-, more info here- please subscribe in the box below the article to know when more appears about it ;-)))
In a nutshell,
"Galentine's Day" has transcended the television screen and become established in everyday culture.
Businesses such as Lyft or Target promoted the holiday on Twitter in 2017, with Target even selling Galentine's Day themed products
Also, I wanted to check how popular Galentine’s, so I asked around me… nobody knew about it!
When looking for information, I found out on the internet that it was more a millenials-Gen Z thing, as these generations are so familiar with social media and technologies. Use of #GalentinesDay helped spreading awareness and the fictional holiday became trendy on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr on February 13, 2017 (that is to say seven years after the original episode aired.)
I do believe that mixing up generations can be so nice and fun too! (we all know at least one lady older than us that kicks ass big time, don’t we?!)
Last year in my city, 10 years after the concept appeared, I did not find any events to celebrate Galentine’s, so book your 13th February for some fun and come make new friends and participate to my Galentine’s ONLINE party!!
Beat Valentine’s Day blues!
Get excited as not only will you be in a high-vibe women’s community but we will also create a meaningful and unique souvenir that does not require any artistic talent!
Come have a fun-filled moment!! Click on image/button below to book your seat (limited availability-book today!)
GALENTINE’S ONLINE CELEBRATION 2022!
Enjoy a creative, fun moment in Sisterhood!
Anyway, I guess it will take time for Galentine to become a national holiday (if ever!),but in the meantime… let’s enjoy every day and be grateful for all the Blessings we have, including amazing Ladies by our side!
Happy Galentine’s day, Ladies!
In the comments, let me know:
if you knew about this celebration and
if you have experienced it yourself! (if so I wanna know all the deets!)
Until the next article, take care and bisous!
Coach Celine
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galentine%27s_Day
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parks_and_Recreation