February doesn’t have to look like pink hearts, forced romance, and matching Valentine’s posts to be full of love. Personally, for me, February feels more like Paquita la del Barrio’s strength and Jenni Rivera’s honesty. Simple reminders of the beautiful love that, as Latinas, we have—yet we need to ensure we don’t lose ourselves in the process.
Because February, but make it Paquita & Jenni isn’t about hating love. It’s about loving with a passion, but ensuring you love yourself too.
Not All Love Wears Rojo, and That’s Still Latina
Not every Latina connects with Valentine’s Day the same way, and that doesn’t make us unromantic or bitter. Most importantly, that doesn’t mean we are toxicas. Some of us were raised to love through action, through responsibility, through showing up every single day—long after the roses die and the teddy bears collect dust.
It’s okay if you:
- Love your partner, but don’t want to get a ramo buchón
- You’re obsessed with your relationship without posting it
- Avoid doing amarres and rituales del calzón
- Don’t feel like doing the whole dressing up in pink and hearts all month
Some of us are living a love story that got cut short when our spouse died, or because we’re divorced now. Other love stories come from women who survived, not women who waited for romance. All these stories shape how we love, and that love is still valid.
February, but make it Paquita & Jenni, means we honor love, we love love, and we celebrate our way of love.
Paquita Energy: Love With Dignity
Paquita reminds us that love without respect is not love; it’s a lesson. She is an example of someone who survived love and life; she didn’t wait for the “real love” to arrive. Her music isn’t about bitterness; it’s about boundaries. It’s about knowing when something no longer deserves access to you.
That energy shows up when we:
- Stop begging for effort and actions
- Choose self-respect and dignity over attention
- Walk away without needing closure for our own good
- Love ourselves enough to say “ya no más”
This February, embrace the Paquita Energy: I love fully, but I don’t lose my worth in doing it.
Jenni Energy: Love That Survives the Fire
Jenni represents the kind of love that breaks you open and still doesn’t destroy you. She has the love that teaches you, humbles you, and reshapes you. The love that coexists with motherhood, sacrifice, grief, rebuilding, and strength.
Jenni’s energy reminds us that:
- You can love deeply and still ask, “¿Que Me Vas a Dar Si Vuelvo?”
- You can cry and still be poderosa
- You can carry heartbreak and still choose joy, and your children
- You can evolve and still honor where you came from, as we should
February, but make it Paquita & Jenni: loving and honest. No pretending, no hypocrisy.
Love Isn’t a Holiday, It’s a Practice
For Latina moms especially, love doesn’t show up once a year. It lives in the everyday:
- In how we love our children y les damos la bendición en las mañanas
- In how we show up for our families, regardless of where they are
- In how we nurture our partners by waking up at 5 a.m. to make them their lunch
- In how we choose ourselves when we know we need to be strong
We don’t need Valentine’s Day to validate our love stories. We live them every single day.
Ultimately, the truth is, some of us are in love in one way or another. Some of us are healing. Some of us are rebuilding. Some of us are choosing peace over chaos. All of it belongs, because at the end of the day, life is a form of love. Every morning, we wake up to a new opportunity to live life, and by performing acts of love, we truly experience it.
So Yes!! Let’s Make February, Paquita & Jenni
This February, we’re not rejecting love—we’re redefining it.
We’re choosing love that:
- Doesn’t require fake or overly done performances
- Doesn’t erase our boundaries or our journeys
- Doesn’t follow trends or is based on budgets
- Honors our stories and our hearts
Because loving like Paquita and Jenni means loving with strength, truth, and self-respect.
And that kind of love? That deserves more than one day on the calendar, “¡Me Estás Oyendo Inútil!”
