If there is any time of the year that gets my sentimental juices flowing, it’s February and Valentine’s Day.
I guess because the holidays are over, the new year has begun, and we get a chance to start all over again with whatever unfinished business we’ve carried over from the previous year.
What I find so amazing is, it’s 2009 ! Wow! Ponder this: most of you reading this column were born in the last century! My editor, putting this all together, is still a very young woman, yet even she was born in the last century.
Kind of puts things in perspective doesn’t it?
I ran across an interesting tidbit from the January issue of Guideposts magazine, and I’d like to share it with you. Eckhart Tolle said this in his book, “Practicing the Power of Now.”
This statement really speaks to me in that it advises people to not waste time worrying about what has past, not to agonize over what is to come, but concentrate on this moment in time.
It’s all we have anyway.
So many people have told me they wished they had written that letter to a loved one, made the phone call that would have meant so much to someone, told their family how much they were loved, kept to the piano lessons or stuck to that diet.
These are all negatives, and to have this year of 2009 be productive and meaningful, we have to start living in the here and now.
Now is the time, with Valentine’s Day fast approaching.
What better time to start anew. Take the time to appreciate every minute of every day that our God above bestows on us.
It is never too late to show kindness to a stranger, give affection to a loved one, remember with kindness those who have gone on before us. Show gratitude for the simplest of gestures, tell your friends how much they mean to you and assure your loved ones that they’re a meaningful part of your life.
All this sounds so simple and preachy, I know, and I don’t mean for it to be preachy, but simple?
Yes, indeed!
In this age we live in, simple might be a refreshing change for all of us.
Slow down, don’t rush, take the time to smell the roses, so to speak.
You gotta wonder what people who value material possessions over the people and experiences in their lives can be thinking.
If not their loved ones, then from what do they derive pleasure?
Some of the most wonderful memories I have are some of the times I had with dear ones who are no longer with us. I am extremely grateful for them and those times.
C’mon, it’s Valentines season. Grab that loved one, your good neighbor, a grandchild, whoever, and tell them what a terrific thing it is that they are a part of your life.