I prepared small packages of chocolate as Valentine’s Day gifts and got on the Overground from New Cross Gate to Highbury & Islington and back via West Croydon to Shadwell. I encountered four homeless people during the 104-minute journey between 7 pm and 9 pm. I gave each the chocolates saying ‘Valentine’s Day’, as a small gesture of kindness, hope and friendship, consciously engaged in the gift-giving, and expected them to bring a little pleasure. All the recipients thanked me, but I felt their confusion and saw their disappointment. I misunderstood that, in the UK, Valentine’s Day is predominantly romantic and some might, therefore, have felt that I was mocking them. Ironically, I was happy giving the small packages of chocolates, but I was just using the social structure of generosity to avoid feeling uncomfortable, disguising myself as a kind giver.
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