Happy Valentine’s Day! Maybe you know that February 14th is the day for love and romance, named after Saint Valentine...
Maybe you even know that St. Valentine was a romantic priest who helped people secretly get married. You probably know that this day is a popular time to buy flowers and chocolate, especially in the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia, but did you know it's also one of the most popular days to propose (ask someone to marry you)?
In America, December 24th (Christmas or Christmas Eve, depending on where you're from) is the most popular time to ask someone to marry you, but it's not surprising that a romantic day like Valentine’s Day is almost as popular. The classic way to propose is with a diamond ring, which often costs one or two months of the man’s salary. Usually the man kneels (or “gets down on one knee”), holds the ring up, then asks, “Will you marry me?” Perhaps you've seen this is in many, many romantic movies. Some people like to do this at big public events, like a basketball game where they can propose while the cameras are looking at the audience. Usually, these cameras look for couples and then show the couples on a screen above the court. Most couples just kiss for the camera, so it's called “The Kiss Cam.”
Even President Obama has kissed on the Kiss Cam!
Source: www.washingtonpost.com
These days, this isn't enough for some people. So, with the popularity of the internet, a new trend is happening, proposal (noun for propose) videos that go viral (become so popular online, they spread like a virus).
For example, one man took photos of himself every day for one year, and had a piece of paper in each picture which said “Will you marry me?” in a lot of different ways. He then showed a video of all these photos to his girlfriend, proposed to her after she finished watching it, and videotaped the whole thing (both the proposal and her watching the video)!
Some people make an even bigger show of it, like this surprise “flashmob” (a surprise dance with lots of people)
Even if there is no proposal video, it is becoming common to use Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to post a picture of the proposal or a picture of the ring on the woman’s finger with the text “She said yes!” (Or lately #shesaidyes ).
Source: http://www.easyweddings.com.au/articles/take-perfect-engagement-ring-selfie/
So, gentlemen, take note: it is not enough for some modern women to ask, some want a show!
Careful, though. Not every proposal is successful. Below is a classic proposal “fail.”