Today is Valentine's Day. A day when people go out of their way to outwardly show others how much they are loved. Anyone who knows me knows that this is not my favorite day by any means. I am not an outwardly emotional person. I am blessed to have many family and friends in my life who I love dearly. But I am not big into hugging; I don't like saying "I love you." I struggle to tolerate anyone inside my personal bubble for more than a few seconds. I am stoic, an ice queen, whatever you want to say - but Valentine's Day and all of its expressed emotions are not my cup of tea.
Having said all of this, I spent today doing my best to tip toe outside my own personal comfort zone. Because Valentine's Day is about relationships, and respecting the feelings of all parties involved. I was blessed with so many gestures of love today:
* Ben came home after dropping off Ava at school with a small rose plant
* My mom sent me an email with the perfect balance of mushiness and sincerity to bring a smile to my face and make me feel loved
* Jocelyn, Molly and I spent the morning with the Carlsons, our friends who have adopted us into their family and love us as such
* My neighbor LaTisha brought over a small saran wrapped package of Dove chocolate, just for me
* Ava made a cute Valentine for Ben and I at school, then felt very sorry for us that we didn't get as many Valentines as she did
* Jocie ran into the kitchen with huge blue goggles on, looked at me, hugged on my arm, asked for a kiss, and then scampered off giggling
* Molly let me rock with her longer than usual before bedtime, keeping constant sleepy-eyed contact and smiling ever so slightly
I have no illusions that I will magically melt my icy heart and be an uber-sentimental person. But I looked around today at all the gestures of love, big and small, and realized that while I may not have to speak a word, there are many ways in which I can show my love and appreciation for those around me. I thank all of you who share yourselves with me, and hope I can do better at showing my love for all the incredible people God has placed in my life.
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