The day is named for St. Valentine's, for whom there are many stories. My favorite speaks of a man in prison for compassion who comforted the forgotten before his death, left a simple note signed, "From your Valentine."
Valentine's Day has always had a quiet truth, the longing to be chosen. It's the fear that every child knows, the classroom party, the waiting, the hope that someone, anyone will ask, "Will you be my valentine?" And the ache that comes when no one does. That fear doesn't disappear with age, it just learns to hide.
The old legend reminds us that love was never meant to be scarce or exclusive. It was never meant to leave anyone out. Love at its truest is an open hand, offered freely, extended first, given without keeping score.
So this Valentine's Day, the question isn't whether we are chosen, it is whether we will choose to notice, to include, to love without conditions, because when love reaches outward, no one is left waiting. This is Dr. Scott Morris for Church Health.
