Write a Love Letter

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I started thinking about a unique way to say “I love you” to the special people in my life.  Dinner for two, a nice card and a hug are my usual gifts on Valentine’s Day.  These things do not require a lot of time or thought, but it always leaves me feeling slightly deflated, as if I did not do enough.

But what is the answer to the perennial question of “What is enough?”

The florists and department stores would respond by saying, “You must buy this or that to show your love.”  The jewelers are busy this time of year trying to convince you that diamonds really will make her eyes sparkle and that an expensive watch is the absolute guarantee of his approval.

But do the treasures of love really lie out there – in the world? Or are love’s assets hidden, only to be revealed by the people involved?

My answer is the latter. It is only when I share my heart with another that I feel connected. No expensive bauble, delicious dinner or sweet confection will forge that bond that must exist when love is present.  Mine the treasures of the heart and you will hit the real stuff of living.

So I decided to do something different this year.  I will write a love letter to my dear husband and daughter. One that is heartfelt, sincere and hopefully funny. A gentle reminder of the good that we share and the love that covers it all.  One that is filled with stories of our life together, examples of all the little ways I love them and the gratitude I feel for sharing the same space and the same life.

But just to be safe, a trip to the drug store and a reservation at our favorite restaurant wouldn’t be such a bad idea!

 

 

Are You a Deadhead Today?

While I was tending to my small flower garden this morning, the birds were very busy getting breakfast.  A red tail hawk that recently took up residence in the upper branches of our oak tree screed loudly, as she tended her babies.  Life’s rhythm could be seen, heard and actually felt.

Then I noticed what I was doing to my flowers.  As my mind pondered life’s rhythm, my fingers automatically removed any dead or dying blooms from the plants.  I was “deadheading” and not even thinking about it.

Then it hit me – what would my life be like if I deadheaded all of the imagined grievances, past hurts, frustration and anger that I carry with me?  What space would open up and how would my life change?

I know what happens with my flowers when I tend to them lovingly and deadhead regularly.  New growth appears in the stem that had past blooms removed.

Why wouldn’t the same thing happen to me?

That question hung in my mind as I took the photos that appear in my blog this morning.  It resonates in my heart as I closed my eyes, and stood in grateful appreciation to God for this insight.  It resounds in my veins as I start my day.

Why not me?