The Intent of Valentine’s

With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, many will be facing the same predictable dilemma of "What will I get my Sweetheart this year?"

And with our present economy the way it is, more often than not, the question seems to be, "What CAN I get my Sweetheart this year?"

But whether we are financially secure or not, it quickly becomes apparent, that in order to answer the question, we have to answer some more rudimentary issues.

Such as, "What is at the heart of Valentine’s?"

Or, "What is the purpose of Valentine’s?"

And even more importantly, "What is our intent?"

Do we possibly hold the adolescent view of this special day, being intent solely on "impressing" our Sweetheart?

When we think of Valentine’s, what do we think of?

Let me ask one more question if I may. What seems to be the primary symbol that epitomizes Valentine’s Day?

You are absolutely correct. It is the "heart."

And with good reason, too, for the symbol of the heart has become synonymous with "love."

When you think of Valentine’s Day, many things come to mind, from Cupid to roses. But it is the Valentine’s heart that has captured the "essence" of love.

And of course, not just at Valentine’s either. For in our day to day use, it is with the red heart shape that we express our love for many things. We will commonly insert the heart in a sentence in place of the word "love."

All that being said, Valentine’s is not about the red shape of a heart, any more than Easter is about a rabbit or Christmas about a tree.

No, Valentine’s Day is about what the red heart stands for, and that my friend is Love.

That is all.

Think about it. Love is what makes a Sweetheart a Sweetheart!

So if our intent is to impress our Sweetheart, then it would seem that we have somehow missed what Valentine’s is all about. For as impressive as love may be, love does not seek to be that way.

Love is sharing.

Love is caring.

Love is giving.

And on Valentine’s Day, we want to "show" our Sweetheart that we love them.

For you see, we can offer our Valentine a most expensive, most exquisite gift. Yet without love, that gift has lost something of its value.

But if that same gift, as expensive as it may be, is obtained through much thoughtfulness, and is given as an "expression" of our love, actually sharing our self, then the value of that gift can become priceless.

This is true with any gift, no matter what the price. For what makes the gift priceless is the intent with which it was given.

As always, giving less than we can tends to "cheapen" our love. Lean to more consideration, more time, more thought.

So for this very special Valentine season, why not show your Valentine Sweetheart your love. And not just this Valentine season, but always.

Remember, a truly great Valentine’s gift is given from the heart.