This Valentine’s Day, I’m planning on taking the opportunity to write each of my kids a note telling them why I love them. It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a while, but haven’t made the time for.
Yes, the whole concept behind Valentine’s Day is enough to make me want to rebel. Why should someone else designate a day when we’re supposed to tell the people in our lives we love them? Shouldn’t we be doing that every day? Well, yes, but the fact is, we don’t. Celebrating Valentine’s Day reminds us of the reasons we love and gives us the perfect excuse to show it when we perhaps otherwise wouldn’t.
Two of my favorite Valentine’s memories come from my dad. When I was about eight or nine, he gave me a necklace for Valentine’s Day. I was awed and overwhelmed. It made me feel so loved. The Valentine’s Day that fell during my junior year of high school was packed with gifts, cards and flowers from a variety of guys I knew. Despite that though, the only gift I really remember getting that year was a single red rose from my dad. That stood out the most, by far.
My mom, not a lovey-dovey, touchy-feely person whatsoever, would go to extra lengths on Valentine’s Day. One year she baked sugar cookies and painstakingly decorated them in intricate patterns and colors with our names on them. Though she isn’t one to say “I love you” out loud, those cookies had the message emblazoned all over them.
So I say, celebrate Valentine’s Day, and celebrate it with fervor. Let all the stops out. It’s never a bad thing to tell someone how much he or she means to you.
How will you show your kids today that you love them?
