Have a far-out, tuned-in, super fantastic day!

Giddy with l’amour, or do you dread Valentine’s Day? Either way, it is nearly here. Red and pink hearts, roses, and chocolates are beacons, pulsating with messages like, “Don’t forget!” “You better hurry!” “Oh, I wish . . . !”

The good news, you still have six days to find your sweetheart the perfect Valentine. There are plenty of great buying opportunities in Logan County. Support your local businesses with love.

Many of us don’t have a Valentine, so it’s a fleeting or sorrowful day of memories to help carry us through. For years, my mother bought paper valentines and picked a special one for each grandchild. She drove to Loveland to mail them, so the envelopes had the Loveland postmark. Isn’t that sweet?

I’m old enough to have many Valentine’s memories—spectacular to disappointing. If I had to recall an impactful Valentine’s Day, it would be one that happened in a classroom of high school students. Large red, pink, or white hearts were cut from construction paper. Students wrote their names at the top of the heart and tied a string to it so they could hang it around their necks with the heart on their backs. Then the fun began. With a marker in hand, the students wrote a positive comment on every person’s heart. Nothing negative was allowed, and nobody signed their names. After a fixed amount of time, every person reads another person’s heart messages. For example, Mary read Scott’s heart:

• Scott, your smile makes me smile too

• I like that you don’t showoff

• You listen when others speak

• You are witty and make me laugh

• You’re a class leader

• You help me feel like I’m okay

• I’ve never seen you act rude or unkind

I’ve used this exercise with students and clients. Years later, several have told me they still had the paper heart. We need to tell each other how important they are to us and why. You can know these comments meant more than any bouquet or box of chocolates. The words touched a place of need and insecurity and lasted long, not just one moment or day.

Whatever you plan to do, or however you plan to spend Valentine’s Day, remember it’s about LOVE. It’s not about getting stressed out or spending money you already spent on Christmas. It’s an opportunity to tell and show someone you care about them as a person.

Closing with the message my mother had on her phone for years. Today, I’m using it as my Valentine’s wish to you: “Have a far-out, tune-in, super fantastic day!”

Until the next time: Live while you live.

Jennifer Goble, Ph.D., LPC, is the author of “My Clients…My Teachers,” and the blogger and writer of Rural Women Stories: www.ruralwomenstories.com.