Ever wonder how long it actually takes to hang up all those Valentine’s Day hearts–one for every student and faculty at DM?

“A long time,” said Taylor Outtrim, who, along with fellow junior Chloe Modak, spent their Thursday afternoon hanging the 425 hearts representing the DM sophomore class. Taping the hearts (the most time-consuming aspect of the task) and hanging them–in alphabetical order–took nearly three hours.

But the time was well spent, students said.

“It’s a great tradition…it helps us feel normal,” said sophomore Katie Hofmann, who moments before grabbed the heart of freshman Owen Weeks, one of more than 1,600 hearts hung by Student Council the night before.

Hofmann slapped the heart on her arm; Weeks’ heart joined seven others Hofmann proudly wore. “It gives us a chance to let our friends know how we feel.”

Teachers said the tradition helps bond with students.

“I had a former student walk in wearing my heart and she exclaimed to the class ‘Yo! I’m repping Ms. J today!!’ said freshman MYP English teacher Ms. Jongwaard.

Student council has been hanging hearts for years; this year, student council members alphabetized the hearts to make finding hearts easier.

But they couldn’t think of everything.

“I couldn’t reach mine,” quipped senior Dani Sherman.