Today is Valentine's Day. A day I've literally had a love hate relationship with for years. My earliest recollections of this day are from elementary school, which was probably where the hate part of my feelings towards this holiday arise.
Like many I had to cut out valentines and bring them in for everyone. We would pass them out and receive them too. Whether what I'm about to say actually occurred or not I can't prove 40 years later, but the feeling has never gone away. Since I did not feel very popular or that most of my classmates liked me, let alone loved me, I felt like Charlie Brown.
I also will admit that my hate relationship with this holiday is that it feels like a marketing ploy, and puts a price on love. Though I do play along because I have a special person in my life, and that is what makes me love the holiday.
I also know that while I am blessed with having a special person in my life and have had 23 Valentine's Days with her. It is not true for everyone. And what sort of kick in gut watching this might be for those without someone to love or be loved by.
So I turn to one way that even I might consider entering even more fully into this day of celebrating love and look at St. Paul's definition and see how I'm doing in being "love."
"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
Maybe towards my wife and in fact towards most people I come in contact with, this may mean more than any candy, special dinner or flowers.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
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