Fellas, Stop Getting Engaged During the Holidays!

Guys, it's time to have a talk about the "getting engaged during the holidays" thing everyone is doing.

Holidays: The time everyone gets together to exchange gifts and anxious ladies wait for you to put a ring on it. The days after Christmas and New Years on Facebook and Instagram is a never-ending slideshow of ladies doing the "I SAID YES" hand-up pose.

#LuckyGirl #Blessed

Yes, getting engaged during the holidays is popular but I'm here to tell you why you should probably wait. First off, everyone gets engaged during the holidays. In my newsfeed, I saw 4 different engagement announcements between Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Yes, I'm very happy for those couples; they found that one person that they want to spend the rest of their life with (or at least the next 5-7 years). But getting engaged during this time is the most cliché thing you can do. Engagements should be a surprise. Well, maybe not a "second-date and things are going well enough" blindside surprise, but you know what I mean. It should be separate from any other activities that are currently going on.

"I'm sure it's cool if I propose mid-dough ball."

An engagement should be you and your partner's special day. Just a day for you and your lover (ewwww) to look back on fondly. Christmas, New Years, and Valentine's Day is everyone's special day. It's probably already one of your friend's special day. Imagine the possible fallout if you give your lady (or gentleman) friend the ring they've wanted only to be overshadowed by the fact that Brenda from accounting (who never replaces the toner and chews louder than most garbage trucks) also got engaged. Great, now you're sharing your special day with Brenda. And Brenda may have gotten a nicer ring.

"I love you, Brenda. Let's go be inconsiderate together!"

You should get engaged on a random Friday in April or something. That way, you can always look back fondly at that date that just you and your "Til Death Do us Part" share. No fear of Brenda's competition. It also declaws the argument that "YOU ONLY GOT ENGAGED TO ME ON CHRISTMAS SO THAT YOU COULD REMEMBER THE DATE! I'M LEAVING YOU FOR YOUR HANDSOME BARBER!" Not getting engaged on a holiday shows you put effort into your engagement and didn't just piggyback on what was already happening.

The guy she told you not to worry about.

Not to be a downer, but a lot of engagements and marriages don't work out. Do you really want to forever blemish an amazing holiday with memories of a failed relationship? I'm aware some people eventually move on but some of us have to be emotionally crippled forever, OK? You could also get told "No" during your proposal, which is the adult equivalent of ""Not getting a Nintendo 64 for Christmas."

The biggest downside to getting engaged on a holiday is that you are setting expectations waaaaaaaay too high for future occasions. That Kitchen Aide mixer is gonna pale in comparison to that time you got down on one knee and professed your love while snow fell and Santa high-fived you. You'll never live up to that. It's not worth the risk.

"None of these are a physical manifestation of my love!"

There are tons of great dates that can be used to propose, heck, several dates are probably special to your relationship. Propose on the date of your first kiss or first date, propose on the anniversary of the first time you did it after you finish doing it. These are all better options than holidays. I wish all of you the best in your relationships and can't wait to like your engagement announcement on April 12th, 2019.