Aah, Valentines Day. A day of romantic love; roses, hearts and chocolate, quiet dinners for two, romantic getaways, gestures.
Or a red cardboard heart, decorated with crayon and big letters spelling out a son's love for his "dody".
To dody fom Buddy. HOPPY VOLNTINES dAY.
Dody adores his card and has it displayed on his dresser where he can see it every morning. No, I didn't get one and I wasn't upset, a little surprised but also touched. Mommies tend to get lots of cards from their children, the dody's out there often get a little left out.
In life BC (before children), romantic gestures ran the gamut of dozens of roses, dinners out, expensive gifts and even the odd getaway. In life post BC all the changes associated with having kids has seen romantic gestures and impulses change. There is romance in everything from the supermarket flowers bought on a whim to the folded basket of laundry or cooked breakfast on a random Sunday morning with a spotless kitchen afterward.
Romance is also found in the smile exchanged when a little boy proudly presents his one and only handmade Valentine to his dody.
The meaning of romance has changed for me. I love the idea of beds strewn with rose petals, chilled champagne and a view over white sandy beaches I really do. However that unexpected note taped to the kitchen cabinet when someone leaves the house at 4.30am saying "I love you. You are beautiful. Have a wonderful day. Me." is just as glorious, especially when your hair is mess, you can hardly open your eyes and kids are yelling for breakfast. That note transforms my day, takes me to a chilled champagne, rose filled moment in time where my hair is perfect and all for the cost of a post-it.
For me, Valentines Day is no longer so much about romantic love as it is a day for us but perhaps especially dody's, to feel appreciated and loved by someone for whom handmade Valentines are a very big deal.
