Today is the day to celebrate the flight of Cupid’s Arrow piercing our hearts. A day when in ancient times, the mating of birds inspired acts of love in the hearts, not to mention the bodies, of men and women. A day when chocolate lover’s get free licence to overdose on their favourite vice and poets give free reign to their creative urgings to express their romantic inclinations for the one’s they love. Or, for the cynics in the crowd, it’s a day when florists and chocolatiers’ and jewellers and Hallmark shareholders rub their hands in glee as they celebrate the bounty that overflows with the commercialization of Valentine’s Day.

I like Valentine’s Day. I like the soppy and romantic. I even like 2-star rated romance flicks where the emotions are even more cloying than the syrupy dialogue impregnated with attestations of love and broken-hearted cries of ‘I’ll never speak to you again!’ I like the idea that February 14th is set aside as a day to acknowledge the one you love. If you’re prone to the excessive, today is a day to pay tribute to your beloved without reservation, without embarrassment or hesitation or even fear. Because, today is the day to express your love freely. And in your expression, love makes the biggest difference of all.

For the past 15+ years, I have received a Valentine’s Day Card from Mr. X. No matter where I’ve lived, he has always found my heart and I’m sure the heart of the other’s to whom he sends his beautifully crafted, albeit poetically deficient cards. In fact, other than the hearts and feathers and glitter that are sprinkled on the front of the card, the inside is subscribed with just a few words. “Happy Valentines Louise. Mr. X.”

Now, don’t tell Ron… I know he’s Mr. X. I have known it for years. He and his wife, Lynn, are two of the warmest, most caring and generous people I know. In the past, Mr. X. has walked down many a street with me, sat in many a coffee shop, not to mention on many a curbside, consoling me through various manifestations of ‘my true loves’ appearances and disappearances in my life. In fact, if I dig deep into my Memory Box, I probably still have the business card he once wrote those famous last words upon as a stopgap to tide me over another ‘love gone wrong’ saga of my escapades in the playing fields of amore — “I am officially so over _______________(fill in the blank)!”

He is witty. Funny. A real Renaissance Man, Mr X. knows lots about love and is quite willing to share his opinions — whether you want them or not!  🙂  He’s pointed in his observations. Keen in his insight and, even when he’s sharing something I don’t want to hear, he is always loving.

On this day, while I share my love (and poetry) with C.C. my beloved, I must open my heart to the joy and beauty Mr. X. and his anonymous Valentine’s Day Cards have given me.

Thank you Mr. X. Your constancy, your generosity of spirit and Love, make a difference in my world.

This one’s for you…