Happy Valentine’s Day

When I think about Valentine’s Day, I think about my grade school days and how excited I was to give all my friends Valentine’s Day cards. My mom would take me to the store and allow me to pick out a box of valentines. Once home, my job was to determine to whom each valentine would be given.

You would first sort the valentines into piles. There would be the best pile for those which you determined would be reserved for your best friends, a mushy pile which you considered to be a little too mushy, and an okay pile which you would reserve for acquaintances (kids who were in your class, but you didn’t really play with.)

There was usually one special little girl on whom I secretly had a crush. That would change from year to year. That valentine would take a lot of thought. I secretly wanted her to know I was crushing on her, but I didn’t want anyone else to know. Worse yet would be if she picked up the message but wasn’t crushing on me. I was always careful to select a card from the “Best Pile” for her, avoiding anything too mushy just in case the feelings weren’t mutual. After selecting the perfect valentine for each person and filling out the “To” and “From” area, I would stuff it into the tiny little envelope it came with.

We always had a Valentine’s Day party at our school and that was a very exciting day. You would bring your valentines and drop each one into the bag, box, or envelope of the person for whom it was intended. The most exciting part for me was not opening the valentines I had received, but watching my friends open the valentine I had selected for each of them. It made me happy to see them happy.

At some age, (I don’t exactly remember when) my friends and I realized we were too old for handing out Valentine’s Day cards. Much like realizing you were too old to Trick or Treat on Halloween, you deeply missed it but never admitted it. So, one year I stopped given valentines to my friends. 

As I think about this today, I realize what an important part of me was sparked by that simple little gesture of giving out valentines. Those were the days where giving was far more important than receiving. Somewhere along the line, I lost sight of that. Sure, as I grew up, I gave a valentine to a special person in my life each year, but I no longer gave valentines to all my friends. I no longer shared this loving gesture with everyone who was important to me.

I’m reversing that today. I’m sending a valentine to all of you. I want you to know I care about you and appreciate your friendship and the role you play in my life. Even if I don’t know you personally and are only a reader of my blog, I consider you, my friend.

So, Happy Valentine’s Day, my friend. I hope you share your love with everyone you know and let them know how much you appreciate them being in your life.