Love is in the air as winter makes a startling return this week. (Maybe we should refer to the recent frozen precipitation as Cupid's Mist?) Regardless of the weather, today is the day for that fuzzy emotion to reign supreme.
Some people have mixed emotions about the "love" day. There are people who don't want to buy into the "greeting card" holiday and feel they can express their love any day of the week. That is great for them but I wonder how many of these people actually follow through with that? Without the help of Mr. Hallmark, you pretty much would have to make a card yourself and if you don't have little ones in and out of your home you may not have the red construction paper or glue sticks needed to assemble your valentine.
Plus, without a designated day on the calendar, you would be left to pick a day yourself, and with as busy as life gets you may forget altogether to drop your special one a love note.
I used to get caught up in the romance of Valentine's Day. We are bombarded with commercials each year showing jewelry, cars, chocolate and bedroom aids. After 20 years of marriage, if the Ferrari/diamond ring combo hasn't showed up by now, I know it is not coming. And besides who buys their special one a car for love day? Where did I go wrong? Does my husband not watch tv?
Nowadays the fun part of Valentine's Day for me is helping my second grader make his heart mailbox to display on his desk to hold his special cards. This year there is a contest in his classroom for the most creative box and he is hoping to win. I really don't have any creative ideas, but as long as I have aluminum foil and a glue gun, we are all good.
It means a lot to me to watch the care he puts into writing out each valentine by hand. His teacher prepares a list of the students' names and he makes sure he writes everyone's name on their card. (It would be much easier to leave the 'to' part blank and just sign the 'from' part.) The spaces are so small that many times the names spill over the side with his big chunky letters, but it is the thought that counts.
There is a little girl in his class who has a crush on him. (Which makes him a little nervous for today.) She told him when he takes his glasses off she has trouble speaking and she cannot concentrate. Wow! These are pretty big emotions for a second grader.
I cannot remember the last time I felt like that. Oh wait, it was last week during the Super Bowl when Adam Levine decided to lose his shirt during his band Maroon 5's performance during the halftime show. To be honest, I was kind of caught off guard sitting there with my family when the show went the Magic Mike direction, but you gotta give the guy credit, he is in good shape and must work out a lot.
I was in second grade when I received my first marriage proposal. A classmate wrote me a note and had our whole future planned out. He just wanted me to write back to let him know my answer. My mom thought it was cute and benign, my dad on the other hand was ready to tar and feather the boy. I never would have expected this same boy, years later in high school, would make my speech impediment part of his daily comedy routine. Good times for sure. But as Spike Jones once sang, "You always hurt the ones you love." Cue the penny whistle.
I guess the message for Valentine's Day should be love is all around. Sorry for the Love Actually reference but, it is - whether it is romantic love, friend love, family love or self love. We can all do something in honor of this special day to share the love. It can be as simple as wearing red, smiling at a stranger, holding the door open for someone or letting the people in your life know they are appreciated and are not taken for granted.
Yes, there are those who will enjoy the grand gesture and get the Ferrari and diamond ring, but for those of us riding in the broken down van with the school holiday shop jewelry turning our fingers green, take a moment to soak in the love. It may not all look the same but the sentiment is...
For those of you who read these blogs each week - I luuurve you too! Happy Valentine's Day!
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