On this day, some years ago, I vividly remember sitting in the Deli on Waterloo, sipping on coffee, thinking about the love I did not have. It hurt. I felt I had so much love to give but with no one to give it to… & then I remembered there was someone in my life that needed it more than anybody… then I wrote:
On this day of St. Valentine, where it has been for so long a reminder to lovers to express themselves to one another, the real reason for the day has been, for so long, forgotten.
St. Valentine, the patron Saint of lovers, was a priest who laid his life on the line for what he believed in. He married people in secret, against the desires of the church or society at large. I believe it cost him his life… but isn’t that what we’re all laying on the line?
So, rather than rue the day because of a longing for something or someone you don’t have, I find it important to celebrate his ideals – of love & marriage – of the things I love and am married to in my life.
Good coffee, poached eggs with salmon cream, cold beer after a surf, with friends, good music, playing music, writing music, simply writing, telling people how much they mean to me, traveling, exploring, smiling, laughing, red wine conversations, snowboarding (there’s nothing quite like riding down the face of a mountain with friends by your side), plane trips, road trips, good films, the excitement in the search, the achievement in the discovery…
There are so many things that I love that they literally cannot fit into one day… so why rue the love you don’t have when there is literally no time for it?
Life is meant to be loved, that I believe, and I have to remember that. The excitement and achievement we have been gifted is not something to turn our backs on in times of longing & loneliness. More so, recognise and envelope yourself in the achievements of the past and the excitement of the future – surround yourself in the love you can achieve today – for if the love that is around the corner is anything like the love I’ve felt behind me, then I am the patron saint of that.
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Today, I sit here awaiting the arrival of my fiancé from work when we will share an embrace we’ve longed for all week. When we met, I was the happiest I’d ever been. I felt loved – by my life – because I’d made the choice to live in love with it.
If you find yourself hoping to find someone to love deeply tonight, you need look no further than the mirror.
… and if you find yourself in love with someone special tonight, tonight, & every night, make them feel that way.
Happy St. Valentine’s Day.
