Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine’s Day is one of my very favorite holidays. I’ve loved it since I was a child and my parents would give me a valentine and we’d have chocolate and a special dinner.  I enjoy sharing love with my family and friends, plus I love covering my house in pink and red hearts.  There is so much positivity about the holiday and I believe love is worth celebrating.  I know some people are bitter because they don’t have a significant other to share the holiday with but I think Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate all love, including siblings, friends, cousins, parents, and children.  Even likable co-workers deserve a chocolate heart or two.  

One of my favorite Valentine’s Day memories is from the year after we got married.  Josh was a full-time student and I was a temporarily unemployed graduate.  We had decided even while dating not to exchange gifts but to do something fun together as a way to celebrate the holiday. Unfortunately that year we had no money and we had to think hard about what to do.  In the end we decided to go sledding at a nearby park that had a good-sized hill.  What we didn’t realize was that the snow which had fallen a few days before had gotten pretty crusty and at the bottom of the hill there was a foot path that had been plowed, leaving a two-foot ridge of icy, hard snow. We set off on our borrowed sled and it got going really fast and then slammed into that ridge and got stuck while Josh and I went flying over the top, skidding over the icy snow, face first.  After some of the shock wore off I asked Josh if he was okay, which thankfully he was.  We picked ourselves up, tried to ignore the people at the top of the hill laughing at us, and went home to warm up and clean up the little bits of blood all over our faces.  I remember being incredibly cold and achy. Josh pulled together a pizza for dinner, we watched Ever After and had hot chocolate.

It seems to be the antithesis of a typical, romantic Valentine’s day, but I remember feeling very loved that day.  First off, we spent the entire day together, which didn’t happen very often at that time.  He didn’t laugh at me when I suggested sledding and went with me, happy just to be with me.  He didn’t get mad when we completely wiped out (or when I beat him in Yahtzee earlier in the day) and he stayed calm when I totally freaked out (I’m not good with blood or getting hurt).  He made me dinner and snuggled with me to warm me up.  He was kind and tender and sweet and did all he could to make me happy.  I believe that is the true essence of Valentine’s day.  It doesn’t have to be fancy dinners and expensive presents but the simplest expressions of love are what make it special.  

We spent another Valentine's Day at Josh's Grammy's funeral celebrating the love that she brought into our lives. While it was sad to lose her, I thought it was appropriate that we should honor her on the day set aside to celebrate love. She was a quiet, sweet lady that was always so kind to me. She radiated love and I remember that day feeling great love for Josh's family and gratitude that I was a part of it. I hope I told her often enough how much I loved and appreciated her.

So take the opportunity to tell the special people in your life that you love them.  Write them a note, make their favorite food, do something especially kind or thoughtful, take them out on a fun date, tell them why you love them, buy them flowers or chocolates or a book and watch their eyes light up in appreciation for your love.  Or reach out to a lonely widow, a forgotten child, a neighbor or anyone you know who could use a little extra love in their life.  

We still talk about the Valentine’s day where we almost died (yes, I can be dramatic when it comes to bodily harm) and it makes us laugh, but it also reminds us of what makes us the most happy: love.