If you believed in Valentine’s Day and hearts, angels, roses…
You could choose to think of Valentine’s day as a farce – as some silly Hallmark gesture to get you to purchase greeting cards – but then you’d have to believe that Mardi Gras is ridiculous and catching beads and wearing costumes are garish customs, and that delivering flowers to a loved one is superficial and unimaginative, and you’d really have to be willing to let go of a lot of conventional rituals such as kissing at the stroke of midnight, kissing under mistletoe, kissing after the wedding vows are said – okay, I digress, I am talking about kissing – obviously you know where this is going – nowhere.
I had a wonderful Valentine’s Day – inviting people to join us at dinner was a good way to open us up to eating, drinking and socializing and away from the focus on each other. She agrees with Steve that Valentine’s day is a construct – but she made me a card anyway from the fragments of our postcard perfect Mardi Gras photograph – and it was perfect – and she gave me a horse from Turkey and I gave her a horse from Whole Foods uptown – and we share dreams and real touchstones – Spanish, Turkey, friends, children, food, horses, but I digress… .
What was the intent of this blog today? To say that yes, Valentine’s Day is a foolish gesture, but why not be fools? Why not give cards with messages of love, and chocolates to be enjoyed, and why not take the opportunity to display hearts and flowers and love’s labors?
Why the hell not, indeed.
I leave you with one thing we can agree on – she said when you love, you illuminate your lover – and this happens not on a designated day – it happens with no agenda, without warning, and when you least expect but are totally ready for it to happen. Lightness comes in, and darkness slithers out.