Day O' Love

Growing up I remember how special my mom made valentine's day for us. She would color everything pink, cut all of our meals into heart shaped treats, & write us love notes.

I even found a drawer full of place-mats she aided us to make for each holiday-- printing our tiny, young, paint-covered hands all over them making turkeys for Thanksgiving, even hearts for this day of love we call valentines. She laminated them so we could keep them forever, which we have. She made fun crafts, sweet cards and filled our heads with kind words. That's what has truly been carried with me onto college when I moved away from home for an extended time frame & it's those kind words that will give me an air of confidence when I am in need of a renewal.

As I've grown older and gotten my fair share of opportunities to spend with elementary aged kids, I see how easily molded they are. I see how powerful words are in their lives, how the interpretations of those words lay a foundation of who they believe they are. I've realized that the kids that don't hear anything at all are the most damaged. They go seeking in all the wrong places for love when they don't get it from those closest to them. Maybe these things are true for all of us.

So, I hope that whoever is close to you knows that they are loved, hears kind words that they will remember always from you, & cherishes moments because they were made special by you.

I hope you tell them reassuring things, every single day, tell them. I hope they are overflowing with joy because of the love you share well with them. Tell them so often that when doubt begins to creep in, it is instantly squashed. They need to hear it from an adult, someone that has been there, someone they know loves them, someone they look up to. They hear their peers opinions all day long, the negative, jealous, immature thoughts of a fellow classmate rings in their ears. But when someone close shares a kind, gentle word, it sticks. It's impossible to get rid of & we need more of that.

Others need you to treat every day like valentine's day simply because you love them.

So, I'm thankful for a sweet momma that always made her love evident to us not just by making holidays special but by making each day unique in its own way.

This life can be rich in love if you'll let it.
Please let it.

Oh, & happy valentine's day.

Or just happy day.