Valentine's Day 2020

Those of you who have been reading this blog for any amount of time will not be surprised to read that I have no romantic plans for Valentine's Day.  My spouse teaches until late, and even if he was available, we would not be going out.  As with Mother's Day and New Year's Eve, I avoid all restaurants on holidays that are designed around spending lots of money.

I do not want caloric treats or fancy baubles.  I like the occasional display of cut flowers, but no need to make a special trip for Valentine's Day.  Buy a pot of petunias instead.

Every day, ideally, should be Valentine's Day, a day in which we try to remind our loved ones how much we care--and not by buying flowers, dinners out, candy, and jewelry. We show that we love by our actions: our care, our putting our own needs in the backseat, our concern, our gentle touch, our loving remarks.

And sustained by the love that sustains in our homes, we can go out to give this love to the world which so desperately needs it.

Today I will be teaching this morning.  We'll do a fun exercise, a variation on the process essay (more details with photos to come).  Then I leave work early because I'm the manager on duty tomorrow.  I'll head over to my friend's house.  We'll have time together to catch up and reconnect and get ready for more friends to join us later in the afternoon.

It's a variation of my quilting group, although we're not working on quilting anymore.  It will be good to share a meal together, but it will be even better to be together, to reconnect. 

Most of us yearn for some variation of that reconnecting, whether it's on Valentine's Day or an ordinary day.  We want people to take time to be with us.  We want our loved ones to take time out for us.  We want to be known that way.

May it be so with all of us--and may that love inspire us to show love to those who desperately need it.  I have a vision of a world that can move away from current ugliness into a world that's more wholesome.