We thought we would repeat this Pearl, as it was so well received. Recently, someone said that they don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day as it is just a “Hallmark Holiday,” and we should be mindful of love all the time not just on that day. While there is truth to this, the reality is that many of us do not practice this each day and having a reminder each February 14th is not be such a bad thing. While the origins of Valentine’s day are rooted in not so attractive times, eventually, a thousand years later, Geoffrey Chaucer, author of “The Canterbury Tales” decreed the February feast of St. Valentinus to the mating of birds. It seems that, in Chaucer’s day, English birds paired off to produce eggs in February and soon after, nature-minded European nobility began sending love notes during bird-mating season. And so it began, and here we are! Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to pause in our busy lives and reflect on our feelings we have for our loved ones and our relationships, a time to acknowledge one another. This act of acknowledgement leads to feelings of gratitude and appreciation for all the goodness of being in a relationship. Being mindful of our love for one another throughout the year, as with any practice we wish to cultivate and grow, takes effort. As human beings, we have the miraculous capacity to mentalize, conjure up thoughts, images and feelings of people, places and situations, even when they are not there. Love can be elusive and invisible - Our partner does not have to be standing before our eyes for us to love them! How cool is that - Love away!!! Happy Valentine’s Day!

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