Is romance dead?

Two things caught my attention this morning as I read the news.  (We had a mini-wind storm last night and two of my neighbours' big trees came down -- one destroyed their car and the other fell within metres of their house.  Our power was out all night -- you never know how much you enjoy having electricity until you don't have it!  I will say this, the BC Hydro people were out almost immediately after the event and worked ALL NIGHT to restore our power, so a big thank-you to them for their hard work, skill and dedication.)

The first one was about a school in St. Paul, Minnesota.  The principal of the school has decided that, in a move to be "inclusive", the school will no longer observe festive days like Valentine's Day or Hallowe'en.  The school's population is very diverse -- 52% Asian, 36% Black, 7% Hispanic, 4% white and 1% aboriginal.  He says until the school can arrive at a way to celebrate everyone's cultures, they just don't see how they can celebrate any festive days.  I have always had a problem with Valentine's Day, because when I was a kid, they didn't make us give Valentines to everyone and there was always a kid who didn't get one in the little mailbox we made for the front of our desk, but I do think we're better at it now.  When my sons were small, the teachers sent home a class list and told parents to make sure everyone on the list got a card.  That seemed like a great way to deal with it.  I think it is unfortunate if you take all the special days out of the calendar.  They can add a lot of fun to the school year and if they're done right, everyone can get a kick out of them.  I see what the principal is saying, but couldn't they ask parents about the festive days in their own cultures and include them in the mix as well?  Valentine's Day isn't really about St. Valentine, is it?  It seems like it's morphed into a very modern occasion and here, at least, is a day to eat chocolate and give out those silly cards with a lame joke on them (a picture of a bee smiling and the phrase, "won't you BEEEEE my Valentine?" for example).  What do you think?

The other thing I read was the story about a young Italian actor, Raphael Schumacher, who was in a play in Pisa that depicted a suicide.  Something went terribly wrong with the performance and it appears that he actually hurt himself in the play and went into a coma and is now not expected to survive.  It is so important to remember that, as artists, it is good to take creative risks, but not risks that endanger your well-being.  Our lives are so precious, and although we are strong and resilient, we have to realize that if we don't exercise caution and common sense, we could face dire consequences.  Young people (and sometimes old people as well) can behave impulsively -- skiing out of bounds, drinking and then getting behind the steering wheel of a car, driving too fast, so many things -- and sometimes, even as you're doing it, you're thinking "this is not a good idea".  Those "prevention" commercials are quite good on this topic.  They show the hockey player warming up on the ice without his helmet, and the guy distracted on his cellphone walking across the street.  Take special care of yourselves this weekend -- see you all on Tuesday.