Celebrating Life and Love
This is a very busy month- as we gently consider waking from hibernation and slowly open an eye or two to the world. We just celebrated ‘Groundhog Day’ and this week we celebrate the Superbowl and Valentine’s Day!
As a former kindergarten teacher, Valentine’s Day was a remarkable holiday. Children focused on their new occupation as mail-carriers-writing out cards at home and carefully delivering them to their classmate’s hand-painted shoeboxes; lovingly adorned with hearts and doilies. As a teacher some of the preparation included collecting shoeboxes year-round and making sure parents received a complete and updated list of ALL classmate’s names to insure no one was ever left out.
The classroom was aglow with red and pink -shirts and dresses- with cutout hearts decorating each window pane. It is early that we learn to celebrate love and fairness-there is an excitement for all kindergarteners in their new responsibilities of reading names and sharing love.
Some people shy away from Valentine’s Day- not wanting to commercialize love. Some soothsayers have called it a ‘Hallmark Holiday” but I say why not support Hallmark - an American company that employs 30,000 people worldwide.
For me, I decided early in life to celebrate whatever I could-finding a reason to shift slightly from the everyday of every day to add some sparkle to life. Even Groundhog Day, we celebrate yearly with a special dinner and watching the timeless classic ‘Groundhog Day’. We celebrate all birthdays, all of the traditional holidays as well as any significant life event. I imagine most all of us do. There is something beautiful about that.
Life is to be celebrated-with hearts and twinkly lights, candles, novelty napkins-appetizers and music-or anything that makes your heart sing. Nothing major or elaborate or pricey- just celebrating the precious gift of life.
On Valentine’s Day, we celebrate love-past or present, human- divine, canine-feline, friend, earth, home, country, self - love holds so much possibility. Surely romantic love doesn’t have to hold the only corner of the love market.
We hear it all the time-love makes the world go round, love is all you need, love is my religion-songs, stories, movies, poems-all sing about the force of love that keeps us together and moves us forward. But have you ever gotten to that place in life that you wonder if you are able to love? Or what on earth love actually is? I’ve always wondered if in our human experience we feel the same way as the next guy. When I feel love is it the same as when you feel love? Or perhaps is love different for each of us-does it feel different to each of us?
I have had near nirvana experiences in my life when instantly I felt the love of the universe upon me. Have you ever felt that? It’s amazing-it could come to you in a moment-like when you’re washing the dishes or walking the dog-but for just a minute or two you are overwhelmed by this tremendous wave of love of everything? A Buddhist friend once told me that we are always surrounded by that love- we just need to learn to tap into it more often.
Once I was in King Kullen Supermarket looking for some yogurt-I think there are currently about 250 varieties of yogurt - and I was staring at them when and a Carole King song came over the speakers-it was “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?” seriously it was- I started to sing it out loud- softly of course-King Kullen does have some pretty good music-and a young man to my right- working there for the summer began to sing along-just a total stranger and I singing together in the yogurt section at King Kullen and the other young King Kullen employee to my left was singing along in his mind-I’m pretty sure-and in that moment it felt like the world was filled with love-and tears came to my eyes and poof that love feeling came over me. I am so grateful for those moments because they remind me that I too am capable of love and that love can be found all around us. So don’t be afraid to sing in King Kullen-or anywhere for that matter!
The first 20 years of my life no one ever told me they loved me-in our house ‘love’ was a four-letter word that nobody used-it was a word for the weak of heart- a pure sissy word. But I knew that love was the ironed blue jeans in my closet and the tuna fish sandwiches and Twinkies in my lunch bag, the clean sheets on my bed and the hot chocolate on a cold winter’s day.
Some days love can be a real challenge -maybe for all of us- and then I remember that ‘stirring the oatmeal’ can be love in action, and perhaps we can add all of the simple things we do for ourselves and others and begin to see them as love in action. Folding the towels, feeding the birds, putting the groceries away, unloading the dishwasher-all simple things we don’t even think about can be acts of love.
And if you’re feeling down, ask yourself, “What do I love to do?”
And then do more of it. If it’s -walking-playing the guitar, singing-baking-swimming-reading-painting, photography……
It’s funny sometimes we get in a rut and forget to do the things we love. So, I would suggest as often as you can - do more of what you love.
And this Valentine’s Day turn on some Carole King -or Frank Sinatra-or Andrea Bocelli and- sing-out loud- dance in the living room-light some candles or twinkly lights -and celebrate this wondrous gift of life and love. Happy Valentine’s Day everyone wishing you all the love your heart can hold!
