Ahh, Valentine’s Day.    The mere mention of the word sends waves of excitement, love and lust through some of us and waves of depression through others.  Which one we experience seems dependent on whether we have a new boyfriend, girlfriend or a loving spouse in our lives at the moment or not.  But, does the way we feel this day have to be dependent on another human being? 

Maybe we can open up the possibility of having Valentine’s Day be about the celebration of everything we love. Maybe we can have it be a celebration of the all love in our lives and…the love that exists in our hearts. 

And we can start (as in all things) with gratitude.  We can start by being grateful that we have the capacity to love, period.  Love is more than an emotion. It’s the life force from which we were created.  We were created not just by intelligence, but love-intelligence.  And when we open up and allow love to fill our hearts and express it in our world, we are more completely aligned with this life-force.

In addition, feeling grateful for the people and things in our lives, expands our capacity of love.  Whether it’s our spouse, our children, our family, our pet, or a house plant…when we are grateful for them, our heart expands.  We feel more love.  We also increase the amount that we allow ourselves to be loved.

And, if you happen to have a significant other at the moment, the one thing guaranteed to grow that love is to openly express your gratitude for them.  People crave acknowledgement and recognition for who they are and what they bring to the relationship.  Very often what your significant other is waiting for is for you to recognize and appreciate them.   If they don’t get it, they might not be around next Valentine’s Day.  So, take this opportunity to tell him what you love about him. What qualities do you love specifically? What does she do that helps make your life easier or more enjoyable?  What things does he or she do that you’ve been taking for granted, but if he or she weren’t there, you’d surely miss it.  Tell him or her today and observe the love expand between you two.  This of course also applies to our children, or friends and our family.

May you have the most blessed and love-expanding Valentine’s Day!