Thursday, February 11

It's all about love

Well, I did it! This is my 100th post. I can't believe it took me so long to get here, and yet I can't believe I had so much to write about. I tried to find some fancy fireworks display that I could post on here, but I couldn't. So, you'll just have to settle for the knowledge of this being my 100th post. Yea! Congratulations to me! :)

I thought that my 100th post should be something great and exciting, so I've been wracking my brain trying to come up with some grand story, a motivational tale, or even exciting news. However, I have had no such luck. I tried waiting it out for a few days to see if something would come up and then today I thought that perhaps I was being a bit ridiculous in my thinking and decided that I would post my thoughts like I do any other time I've written on here.

With the Valentine's holiday fast approaching I've seen and heard all kinds of opinions about the day. Most single people don't like it because they are single. Most married people don't like it because it's another special occasion they have to remember. This one doesn't like the hype, that one doesn't like the commercialism, and so on. One of the most recent themes I've noticed in these opinions of Valentine's day is that they don't feel one day should be set aside as a day to share love with others. I've seen a lot of comments about how people feel love should be expressed every day and not just one day in particular out of the year. As always, I have a few things to say about that.

Anyone who decides to wait all year long to say "I love you", or some other sweet sentiment, to someone else is just a plain and simple fool. Think of all your family, friends, and loved ones. Do you honestly know someone who vows to wait until February 14th to share their love? Do they refrain from talking, helping, sharing, or otherwise offering their talents, time, and energies throughout the year in order not to ruin the Valentine's holiday? I know of no one who does such silly things, so I wonder why others make comments about having this one day as a day set aside for love and affection. I love my family and tell them such whenever I end a phone call or an email or a face to face conversation with them. I love and appreciate my friends and tell them any chance I can, sometimes in the most random moments when they are least expected. I am grateful for perfect strangers who go out of their way to help me with something, whether I ask them or they see a need. I appreciate the work that is done by ordinary (and sometimes extraordinary) people when I am in a restaurant, a store, the movies, or at the gas station and I always say thank you. I am especially grateful for my doctors and surgeon and have written them thank you notes on several occasions because I want them to know how much I appreciate all they do for me. Above all I love my husband and I tell him so every single day at random times, again, when he least expects it and he always replies back to me with the same.

The thing is, as I get older, and the more I go through, I begin to understand better the feeling of love, gratefulness, appreciation, thankfulness, respect, honor, and friendship. I find it in the little things so here is my list of little things that others have done that I have noticed and have impacted me in one way or the other.

~When my husband gets me a cold glass of water when I make the simple statement of being thirsty. He brings it to me without me even asking.

~When my dad lets me use his garage, driveway, tools, and even himself to fix our car without even thinking twice about it.

~How my mom knows just how to hug me when I'm having a tough time and who cries with me when I don't know what else to do.

~When my brothers come by to visit and hang out with me even though my house is messy and I may not feel like visiting to begin with.

~When my mother-in-law calls me because she was thinking about me and we talk for an hour.

~How my sister-in-law knows how to make me laugh and has the uncanny ability to call or email just when I needed to hear from her.

~When my sister sends me something that she saw and thought of me for, and I don't even know it's coming.

~When my grandma and my uncle send me get well cards out of the blue and they share words of advice and thoughts that I desperately need.

~How my friend can not only teach me a new talent but get me the supplies I need to start it with and make me a little case to keep everything so neat in.

~When my doctors call to give me an update on any tests and afterward, take a few minutes to ask me how I am really feeling.

~How friends come over to visit on Sunday afternoons when they could be spending time with their families.

~How I can call my brother and talk to him for hours on end about nothing and everything all at once.

~When my friend takes time out of her busy life to draw pictures for my book, and then asks me for my advice about them, even though she is talented beyond anything I have possibly seen and does beautiful work.

~How my family members and friends send me sweet words of compliments and are excited at any happy news I share with them.

~When others share their thoughts on their blogs for me to read, thereby helping me to create my own thoughts and opinions about things, or just to give me a glimpse into their life and allowing me an opportunity to help them as they have helped me.

This list is not all inclusive because this blog post would never end. My point with all of this is to get those people who don't like Valentine's day because they don't feel one day should be set aside to celebrate love, to take another look at it. Take a moment to reflect on all the people who have made an impact in your life and how that has affected you. Don't think about the sad things, but think about the things you have learned and those you have loved, and still do. Go out and observe people. There is love in the air. People are happy, centered, content for that one day. They are able to rest their worries on the shelf for a time and think about someone else without any regrets. There's just something magical about that day that everyone can participate in, single or not. After all, it's all about love...



2 comments:

Gina said...

This was a wondrful post, and thank you so much for mentioning me! I am very grateful for you. :)

Lanna said...

You are amazing!