Happy Valentine's Day from The NewsHouse

Valentine's Day has never been simple. Everyone has an opinion somewhere in between on what they think love is. Accordingly, the NewsHouse decided to ask, because clearly we can't pin it down, right? We talked to the Bernice M. Wright Child Development Lab School to get their opinions as well as the views of SU students across the hill. Read the staff's answers below:

Photo: Illustration by Jenna Ketchmark

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Angela Hu | Social Media Editor

Whew. This is hard. What do I love? I love eating half-cut papayas, scooping the seeds out, juice dribbling down my cheek. It reminds me of my grandfather. I love waking up early in the morning, making a cup of coffee and just...sit. Not think, not speak, not slurp...just sit. Very quietly and listen to the birds chirp. And sometimes, I love smiling at strangers. Or having stolen glances. They’re like one-second-romances.

Eric Vilas-Boas | Special Projects Editor

$1 pizza, from New York, N.Y. My laptop. Potlucks. Evenings involving popcorn and a film and a warm bed. The Wire, Simon. Dune, Herbert. Alligator, Dessner and Berninger et. al. Mom. Dad. Sister. Sunsets at the top of a mountain I just hiked. My bike, above all else. And Italian wine in Florence. I really loved Florence.

Irina Dvalidze | Web Video Editor

I love boys that can whistle and play string instruments (i.e. Andrew Bird), boys who can play a trumpet (i.e. Zach Condon), and Jon Stewart. I also really really like pomegranates and watching The Graduate whenever I feel sad. But above all else, I like climbing the Key Biscayne lighthouse near my house, while listening to the RAA, it is the only time I am willing to tolerate Florida humidity.

Emily Shearing | Off Campus Editor

Spontaneous road trips, snapping the perfect photo, riding my bike with no hands, stripes, spoonfuls of peanut butter, the way I feel after a long run, laughing until it hurts, forehead kisses, shower beers and sunsets. But most of all, I love being in love. The world is more beautiful when you can share it with someone you love.

Cheryl Mowczan | Photo Editor

Drawing creepy faces, the ocean and a great beach day, melted cheese, my friends’ hospitable parents, that beautiful “swoosh” sound of a basketball net, a sunny morning all to myself, going somewhere that I know nothing about, legendary moments with family and friends. And above all else, I love my Savior, Jesus Christ, who has meant more to me and is more a part of me than all of these things combined.

Heather Wentz | Off Campus Editor

I love the sand between my toes, always getting the "crappy" beach chair and enjoying happy hour on the beach. I love beating my brother in ladderball and subsequently getting thrown in the ocean. I love going for morning beach runs and getting back just in time for a homemade breakfast sandwich. I love long, lazy beach days. I love strolling the beach at night, sharing peanut butter swirl ice cream with my boyfriend.

Chris Ballard | Entertainment Editor

I love a strong cup of coffee, a burly flannel and Converge’s “Jane Doe” on vinyl. I love shredding a bass solo in front of 10 toothless townies at dive bars in Binghamton, then downing pitchers with them after. I love the smell of bonfires and the spectre of childhood when life gets tough. I love you.

Sara Tracey | Campus News Editor

Love means new adventures, quiet moments and everything in between. It means growing as individuals and together. It’s the Gilmore Girls, where Hannah is Lane. Puppies, old and young. Home-cooked meals. A warm pair of slipper socks. Skyrim, because you don’t care if I’m a closet nerd (alright, more than a closet nerd). Making up after an intense fight because we already knew everything would be OK. Love means having the ability to forgive and the strength to move on. 

Leah Stacy | News Tracker Editor

I love the smell of home after it rains; a smell of grassy fields, wet dirt, and worms. I love my family and how they make me laugh so hard I cry. I love coffee dates and planning adventures with PBW. Orange cats. Dancing. Stories. Fettuccine Alfredo. New York Riesling. God. Ireland. I love this snapshot of eternity called ‘life.’ 

Tara Donaldson | Life & Style Editor

I love that moment in the midst of the flurry of travel that you stop, just briefly, and realize that the world is a wondrous place. I love to lay in the grass, float in the ocean and eat mangoes I pick from a tree. And above more than a dessert should be above, I love ice cream. You can never be unhappy slurping a scoop of cookies and cream.

Katrina Tulloch | Assistant Executive Producer

I love when people sneeze. The weirder the sneeze, the better. Freshly rolled sushi. An inky pen. Reading glasses on men. Bow ties on women. Handwritten letters. Doctor Who. Dinosaurs. A bowl of Cheerios and milk at 3 a.m. When my mom makes fried rice and eggs for breakfast. When my dad says, "Quiet, I'm watching the news."

Video by Irina Dvalidze and Cheryl Mowczan