Who Will Be My Valentine?

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For the last few days radio show host have been having people call in with their most memorable Valentine's Day scenarios. That got me to thinking about my most memorable ones. Let me tell you about two of them.

The first one was in 1980. It was the night before Valentine's Day; Curtis was working second shift at the textile plant (4pm-11pm). I took the children up to bed and as I did something said, "Call your, Mom and Dad and wish them Happy Valentine's Day.

So I came downstairs and called. When Daddy answered, I said, "Will you be my Valentine?"

He said "I'll always be your Valentine!" We talked a little more; I chatted with Mom. No big deal.

Two nights later we got a call, my 82 year old Dad had fallen and hit his head on the cement driveway. He never spoke again and died 18 months later.

I will forever be glad I obeyed that impulse to call him and ask him to be my Valentine and have him promise to ALWAYS be my Valentine. It is a comfort even now; after 29 years.

Another memorable Valentine was one when I was depressed.....loss of both parents, farm draught, three teenagers, impending bankruptcy, a few downers like that and I came home from school on Valentine's Day to find a huge hand lettered banner stretched all the way across our carport that said "WILL YOU BE MY VALENTINE?" hand lettered by my never before crafty husband in magic markers. No gift of flowers, jewelry, perfume, dinners out, will ever mean as much as that freezer paper banner made for me by my husband.

But this year he did come pretty close. This is what he wrote, "I love watching your face light up and knowing I can still make you laugh. I love your tenderness and how you really care about other people's feelings. I love being the guy standing beside you in those old photos of ours. I love how you bring out the best in me and don't let me settle for less... I love that you are genuine and you don't have to pretend. I love sharing the quiet with you as each day winds down, I feel totally content because you are near." I've written him lots of love notes and poems through the years but never anything that said it all the way this does for me.

So even though we didn't hear from any of our children or grandchildren on Valentine's Day; we have each other and that is enough.