EMOTIONS ran high, romantic feelings got heightened as friends, lovers and families celebrated the 2018 Valentine’s Day on Wednesday. Stores took time to stock on varieties of romantic gift items, online stores threw adds of scented flowers and fragrance to interested buyers, while leisure houses and places of worship announced discounts and programmes respectively to cater for the needs of couples and singles.
Despite the fact that for the first time since 1945, this year’s Valentine’s Day also marked Ash Wednesday, a ceremony which commenced the Lenten period, it appeared many persons in some cities had to choose between the sobriety of the Lenten period and the romantic glee of Saint Valentine’s Day. Others who appeared to choose both, did albeit in a modest manner.
Compared to previous years, the 2018 Valentine’s appeared to be less of a carnival like outings as some celebrities who spoke with The Nation either spent the day in church, at work and with family members.
Chief Opral Benson, the Iya Oge of Lagos, told The Nation that the day turned out to be a quiet outing for her. “That particular morning, I was at my office where I had a special time with my staff and then returned home to a quiet time,” she said. Clarifying that her decisions had nothing to do with the coincidence of the day with Ash Wednesday, she added that she just wanted to “have a quiet time, a time just for me”.
For Taiwo Ajai Lycet, a stage craft doyen of international repute, Valentine’s Day met her in the sky where she was on a flight back to Nigeria from overseas, having been away for a tour with the ‘Hear Word’ Production team.
“We went to Harvard, American Repertoire Theatre. I was away for over a
month and it was a happy time for us in-flight. We had two flights because we connected to another in Paris”, she said, grinning while adding that she is spending time with her son at the time of the conversation.
Valentine’s Day presented the opportunity of a family and church time for popular artiste, Kenny Saint Brown as she admitted to celebrating the day with her children and church members.
“We had a Valentine mid-week service and we shared the word on Agape love. It was an Ash Wednesday, so I think many people thought being a holy day, it could not be a good day to celebrate. That must have been a mistake because God is interested in love and in the celebration of love”, she waxed on.
She expressed delight at the fact that despite a football match which was fixed for the day’s evening, many young people, especially the boys, still made it to church where cakes and gifts were shared among members.
For successful Nollywood actor, Said Balogun, February being his birth month had always been special to him. He told The Nation that he attended a Valentine’s Day concert organized by a notable property organisation in Lagos where the likes of Wande Coal and Tiwa Savage performed. “I was there enjoying and catching fun with my own people”, he gleefully announced.
Tessy Yembra, a celebrity dancer who has been in the entertainment industry for long, stated that she celebrated the Valentine’s Day with her grandchildren at the Shoprite Mall when they returned from school.
Actor/movie producer, Fred Amata, had to replace the leisure of romance with work as he spent the Valentine’s Day at a movie location in Ikorodu, where he gathered cast and crew members for the production of an upcoming movie project.
“We had just enough fun that work could allow us and that was it for us. The movie I am working on will be called ‘My Honour’”, he enthused.
Popular socialite, Lanre Da Silva, had to replace the flashy red and white colours of Valentine’s Day for something which reflected the mood of Ash Wednesday, in order not to breach her faith as a catholic.
“I was at the church in the morning because I am catholic. However, all was not lost in the evening as my husband and I had a special dinner at home to mark the day.”
Famed musician and instrumentalist, Tmac said he enjoyed the celebration of the day with his son and dogs. He was, however, quick to add that love should not be a one-day affair.
“Valentine’s Day is everyday celebration for me. It is sad that the day has been commercialized; it should just be another day for sharing and loving just like every other day.
“Guess what, I wouldn’t have even remembered that it was Valentine’s Day
until I got on social media and saw over 1,000 messages on my pages. I just said ‘wow!’”, he exclaimed.
Less turn out in Lagos
In Lagos, Nigeria’s entertainment capitals, malls, eateries and cinema were places people took to celebrate with their loved ones. Although the crowd could not be said to be staggering since the day was a working day, again it won’t be out of place to say that the solemnity of the Ash Wednesda,y to some extent, damped down the celebration of romance the day would have witnessed.
In the Ejigbo-Isolo suburb of Lagos, Valentine celebration was reflected in the decorations of some hotels, eateries and fun spots. Moving from Ire-Akari road through the relaxation hub of Isolo to the Ago-Palace way, one could see enthusiastic couples making their way to one fun spot or the other. The red and white colour attire usually adorned by most youths on Valentine’s Day was not as pronounced as in the past. At Joez Spot in Bucknor Estate, Oke-Afa, Isolo, the fun spot was filled as some customers also marked their birthdays at the location.
Also, the King Solomon Resorts, a popular spot in the Isolo-Ejigbo area, appeared to attract some fun seekers comprising two groups of guests: those who came to have a good time with their spouses to mark the St. Valentine’s Day and football enthusiasts who trooped to watch the European Champions League matches. The Nation observed that some men who came with spouses were caught in between concentrating on their love date and monitoring the football matches, which showed between 8pm and 11pm. It was also observed that most people left the fun spots immediately after the football matches.
With the observation of the celebration of Valentine’s Day in Lagos compared to previous years, it won’t be out of place to say that the 2018 St. Valentine’s Day coinciding with Ash Wednesday dampened the enthusiasm of many who ordinarily would have gone full blast into the day’s revelry. Attending mass in the morning and going into revelry later didn’t seem to sit well with some Christian faithful.
“This year’s Valentine’s Day came on a wrong day. How can you mix Ash Wednesday and St. Valentine ‘s Day? I just went to church for morning mass and then found my way to the shop. My girlfriend called my phone, but I did not pick the call. We will settle later. I only went out to watch the Real Madrid versus Paris St. Germaine match,” he said.
Funfair in Port Harcourt, less excitement in Calabar
In the oil rich city of Port Harcourt, Valentine’s Day presented an opportunity for funfair as families, friends and colleagues were seen in various spots across the Rivers State capital, wining, dining and dancing to music streaming from giant loud speakers mounted at different corners.
Churches and Christian fellowship centres were not also left out of the event of the day, as they organized talk shows and teachings on family, marriage and relationships according to bible standards. Although most of the city’s residents were dressed in their usual daily wear, some especially children wore red and white colour clothing for some of the evening events.
Fun seekers, who trooped to the SPAR Shopping Mall, bared their minds on the importance of the Valentine’s Day celebration. One of them, Kehinde Idowu, told The Nation; ” This is a day set aside to show love to your spouse which I sincerely agree to but that doesn’t mean you won’t show love to your lover all the time. Love has to be our everyday way of life. It should be shown not only to our wives but to our family and our neigbours as well”.
In the carnival city of Calabar, the Cross River State capital, the Valentine’s Day lacked the usual verve and excitement that usually characterize it in previous years. Although a drive round Calabar on the night of the day showed how drinking joints, eateries and other outdoor leisure facilities were all coloured red and white colours drapes; The Nation learnt that patronage was lower than expected.
However, The Nation still ran into lovers, mostly dressed up in red and white, who said the day was too significant to pass without some form of commemoration. Mr and Mrs Daniel Effanga, who were at the outdoor garden of the Cultural Centre complex, disclosed that although they share love every day, the Valentine’s Day nevertheless provided an opportunity for them to reflect on the spirt of the day as well as present gifts to each other.
Mr Effiong Ekanem had a different outlook. For him, there was nothing particularly special about the day. Though he had a wife, he said it was too much pressure to put emphasis on the day, adding that his spouse understands that he loves her no matter what day it is. Anietie Inyang, on his part, believes Valentine’s Day is an opportunity for love to be shown to all whether lovers, family or friends, and even strangers.
Inyang’s view came to the fore in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, where a group known as the Immigration Officers Wives Association (IOWA), used the opportunity of the day to show love to some less-privileged children.
Visiting the motherless babies home run by the Kwara State Reception Centre, the Chairperson of IOWA, Mrs. Adetoba Adetoyin, told the reporter that the motivation behind the visit was to join efforts with their officer husbands.
“We are presenting toiletries, detergents, foodstuffs and some amount of money. All over the world, people are celebrating love today. That is why we are reaching out to these children to feel loved. I am so happy with the fact that other people also came around to show love to these children. I am excited that we too are part of the show of love.
