Random thoughts on Valentine's day from an incurable (and aging!) romantic....
First thought - oh no, another Hallmark holiday...
looking back - elementary school horrors (being a rather unfortunately odd looking, over weight, shy, unpopular, not very social, nerdy book-wormish type) - what to write on the cards, what will I get in return, a "popularity" contest, what kind of awful cards did my mom buy for me to fill in and bring to school to give out.......yuck!!!!!
middle school into high school - awkwardness, dealing with not being in the "popular" bunch, how the hell to approach girls, loneliness...at least we don't have to give out those damn cards and put them into the big box! But a good excuse to eat some candy....
then....skip forward through high school and college (no real Valentine day memories - just trying to get through the "stuff" that is life for the 15 through 24 year old)....
Finally - found the right one - so today, looking back over the 34 years of our friendship, then marriage - a "day" isn't needed to push candy and remind us of how to treat our loves ones. A great relationship is an every day, every year thing to be thankful for and work at and appreciate.
...and yet, Today - it is a great day to take the love of my life to lunch...no cards (sorry, Hallmark!), no poems - a few tokens (our favorite candy, a few miniature roses for planting out later in the spring)....but the best gift of all - time together (the joy of both of us being retired!)
Happy Valentine's Day everyone - to the happy, lonely, awkward, sad, head over heels - I suspect most of us have been all of these on different days through the years!
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I was positive nobody would ever love me, much less marry me or give me children!
Boy, was I ever wrong!
The Ugly Duckling grew up into the Swan, and then she found her Prince!
Happy Valentine's Day to you and to all of DU!
Valentine's Day lunch must have been lovely without a Hallmark moment. 
