FEB 17 — Valentine's day is over. Is the county still alright?

I was a little worried, wondering if the advent of Valentine’s Day would usher in the Judgment Day as well. The end of the World where moral deprivation and crime would rule.

No, I wasn't suffering from Valentinophobia. In its stead, a government agency had launched a campaign to block Valentine’s Day celebration, claiming that it was the enemy of the Islamic faith and could lead to widespread moral decay.

Another religious body called Valentine’s Day a trap, and had up patrol squads to prevent young people from falling into this “trap.” Violators would be served with a moral lecture and in more severe cases, face punishment. 

So, the Valentine's Day is like the Hungry Ghost Festival held during the seventh month in the Chinese calendar, when ghosts are set free from the Hades. On this day, sweet-mouthed sex maniacs will be out to hunt innocent young girls, doping their drinks, stripping them naked, and then defiling their sacred bodies. 

As if that is not enough, the souls of men will fall on this day and demons will possess their bodies, enlivening the evil lusts deep inside them, and making them do the terrible things some guys would be attempted to. 

Parents across the country will live in fear on Valentine’s, their eyes glued to their teenage girls and boys at home. The moment any slightest hint that the child will venture out of the house is picked up, the door will be padlocked, better still if the child 's body is tied up so that he or she will not fall victim to the sex demon. 

The following day, like any day immediately after the previous Valentine’s, the world remained largely intact, and Malaysia was still very much in existence. The demons did not roam our streets, and everyone in the street is neatly clad.

For Heaven's sake it was just Valentine's Day. Not an orgy party or Hungry Ghost Festival of some sort! The buzzword for Valentine's day is LOVE, but then why is it so much dreaded?

Valentine's Day is a day we express our passion for our loved ones. Not necessarily there have to be massive bouquets of fresh flowers, splendid dinners or eternal vows. It just gives the world a chance to express some romantic affection. 

So, why on earth should love be barred?! 

This year's Valentine's Day clashed with the Chinese Chap Goh Meh festival in a rare once-in-19-years rendezvous, making the day all the more romantic. 

But we had some problem here. Radio stations and online websites were making a big fuss over it, and we were stuck in the dilemma whether we had to be the well-behaved kids at home, or those perfect lovers.  Chap Goh Meh marks the final day of Chinese New Year celebration, a full-moon day which according to age-old traditions is a day of family reunions. 

But the western Valentine's Day is supposed to be shared only between a young man and his sweetie, who should indulge themselves romantically over a candle-lit table at a western restaurant. This rare festive coincidence, as romantic as it was, also put family and romance to true test. 

To spend time with family or to romance with sweetheart? To devour a sumptuous jolly dinner at a noisy Chinese restaurant, or to quietly cut the steak in a dimly lit restaurant with your loved one? 

It is like whom you will save first if both your mother and your wife falls into the river. Arguments over this are futile and unnecessary. Family and romance should be allowed to exist side by side without either one taking precedence over the other. Definitely not about responsibility or obligation. 

Romance is spawned by a unique encounter among the millions of strangers we have bumped into in this lifetime, which later develops into undying love. Family, meanwhile, was pre-determined in the previous lifetime, an arrangement sealed in the Heaven. You do not have a choice whether to accept or reject your tie with your parents or siblings. 

Romance and family will eventually merge as one: the romance that we once would die for into the unflattering familial love, which is eternity. No conflicts between Valentine's and Chap Goh Meh. Only sharing and extending of love. 

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malay Mail Online.