Surprise!
If all else fails, try the latest in Valentine’s gifts: a heart-shaped peanut-butter sandwich. Mind you if you do try this, all else in the romance line probably has failed; if not, it almost certainly will.
I somehow do not think that this is going to catch on with Hallmark or Walmart. McDonalds, perhaps? Maybe not.
Fear not, Dear Readers, my wife did receive a little more than this — mainly because I had to make up for not doing anything last year. Fortunately, however, love is not measured by Valentine’s gifts, or the lack thereof; love is a gift of God’s grace, which we are learning to give each other every day.
I used to think that if you love someone, when the stresses and strains of life threaten to overwhelm, you have the support you need; the other person is there for you. I now realise that when the focus is on God’s love, and on giving that love to another, you practice that giving every day during the good times. And when struggle and pain arrives, you continue to give because the focus of your life shifts from the circumstances (good or bad) to the joy of giving and the joy of love.
Of course, realising it and making it a natural, every-day part of our lives are often miles apart. We need to practice giving love every day; it’s much too important to wait for the 14th of February to come along, even if it does come with heart-shaped peanut-butter sandwiches.
Wondering Preacher 