Tomorrow, the world will convince you that love is all about chocolate, flowers, and sappy cards celebrating a guy who… got beheaded. Yep. St. Valentine didn’t exactly go down in history for his romantic poetry or his Pinterest-worthy proposals. He went down because he stood up for what he believed, even when it cost him everything.
Off with his head!
Here’s the quick version: Valentine lived in a time when the Roman Empire was all about control. Emperor Claudius II didn’t want soldiers distracted by love, so he banned marriages for young men. Valentine, being the kind of guy who didn’t take kindly to stupid laws, kept marrying couples in secret. He got caught. He got thrown in jail. And yes, he got executed. No chocolates, no roses, no Hallmark moment. Just courage. And one less head in the world.
So, here’s the takeaway for the rest of us: Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be about flowers, expensive dinners, or forced romance. It can be about giving of ourselves boldly, courageously, and selflessly. About showing love in ways that matter, even when it’s inconvenient, risky, or doesn’t come with a shiny bow.
If you want to honor St. Valentine tomorrow, skip the clichés. Stand up for someone. Encourage a friend. Sacrifice a little comfort to make life better for someone else. That’s love worth celebrating.
And honestly? My wife deserves the real Valentine’s Day award for putting up with me. She’s the one I get to show love to every day. Not a lot of chocolates, very few dead flowers. Just several references to dead saints and tons of patience required.
Because real love isn’t a holiday. It’s courage in action.
I personally live by the philosophy that I never trust a person who says trust me. If you have to tell me to trust you, then chances are I probably shouldn’t trust you! But to be fair trust is pretty tricky. It’s one of those things that has to be earned. You can’t just assume someone will trust you. You have to go out of your way to live a life that is trustworthy. 
Now before we get too far into this I have to admit something. I suck at showing affection! I’m not one of those lovey, gushy kinds of people. I don’t do flowers or chocolates. I rarely even remember to buy cards. Compliments flow from my mouth like water from a dried up well. I pretty much fail at this whole showing love thing. But just because I don’t show it well doesn’t mean I don’t love. 
