 Happy Valentine! I hope your February 14 was special. However you might have spent it, I hope you remembered to love yourself first, know that you are, in fact, love in action and just enjoy the moments the day brought. My day was amazing but I try to make each day special because, well, it is. Each day is a gift to receive and a gift to share. I don’t usually take the day off but I felt quite deserving of some special self-care so I gave myself the gift of some time off work and leisurely doing whatever floated my boat. I spent some of the early part of the day with my mother as mother-daughter time and it was so much fun. It was heartwarming. When I was a child, my family exchanged Valentine’s Day gifts and the tradition is still strong. In spite of the fact that we treat one another as though each day is Valentine’s Day, we still participate in the holiday ritual. During these adult years, extending this love and thoughtfulness goes far beyond family. Strangers become somewhat an extension of family. Everywhere I went on February 14, I exchanged Valentine wishes with others whose paths I crossed. This kind of warmth and kindness reminded me a little of the Christmas season. During the Christmas season, people tend to be a little kinder, more thoughtful and more giving. Initially, I thought I might write this month about why we are more inclined to respond to an arbitrary calendar date than to simply live in the ultimate state of humanity – each and every day – just because that is what we should do. Instead, I decided to share photos I hope will touch a place deep inside you. It is my hope that you will be moved and inspired to think and then feel a sense of urgency to act in love.   After all, Valentine Day really is an everyday kind of day ... and all this on top of Black History Month.  I find it a beautiful serendipitous occasion to have Black History Month and Valentine Day share a month. After all, this is certainly a month for love, loving all and loving the richness of this country that would not exist but for the contributions of Black folk in all areas of life. Black Americans inventions, groundbreaking discoveries and other influences we experience on a daily basis are far too extensive to begin to name. Please, enjoy some photos, again, to inspire you. Be moved to be grateful for the progressive and vibrant world our brothers and sisters of color gave, and continue to give, us. Certainly, these gifts to our better life experiences are worthy of daily remembrance, acknowledgement and celebration. Happy Black History Month!     
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Photos used under Creative Commons from DFID - UK Department for International Development, COD Newsroom, verchmarco, aaron_anderer, kimmy aoyama, Seattle Municipal Archives, colinpoe, Javcon117*, Rod Raglin, Phil Roeder
