Two sides of the heart

Which kind of Valentine are you? In honor of this holiday that people seem to love or hate, let's take a look at two different approaches to Valentine's Day. The sweet, thoughtful type of Valentine is expressed by this little boy shopping at Target with his mom:

Little boy: I love you, Mom! (repeats five times and is warmly acknowledged by Mom each time)
Little boy: (grabbing Mom's face) Mommy, I love you so much I just can't stop telling you it!

(Audience: Awwwww. Fainting in the aisles occurs among some of the female shoppers.)

Now, I'm betting that some of you might find yourself more closely aligned with the philosophical Valentine view expressed by another little boy overheard in Target (really, I don't go around Target snooping on little boys and their moms, it just seems that way):

Mom: Let's look at some Valentine cards for the kids in your class.
Little boy: AGAIN? We just did that!
Mom: That was last year, honey.
Little boy (incredulously): We have to do this EVERY YEAR?

I'm sure that many of us, like that second little boy, wish we could just do one special thing on Valentine's Day, once, and get lifelong credit for it. But it doesn't work that way.

So, even if you really, really blew Valentine's Day this year, or you hate it, or you would prefer to pretend it doesn't exist, go grab somebody's face and tell them you love them so much you just can't stop telling them it.

And don't let a whole year go by before you do it again.