Beyond the Glitter: A Valentine's Reflection

In my years, I've seen Valentine's days,

Countless in number, fading in a rose-tinted haze.

"A day of love," they say, with a sigh,

Yet, in its heart, do we not spy.

A maze of commerce, tangled and tight,

Where true meaning is lost to a spendthrift's delight?

"Love is not a trinket, nor a card," I muse,

Not a bauble bought, nor a moment used.

It's in the quiet, in the everyday grace,

In shared laughter, in a tight embrace.

"Love," whispers the wind, "is in giving your time,

In listening, in caring, in sharing a rhyme."

We've dressed love in glitter, in waste, in excess,

In the fleeting, not in the tenderness.

Of hands held in comfort, in joy and in grief,

In the steadfast, the constant, the true belief

That love, in its essence, is simple, profound,

Not in what's bought, but in what's found.

"Cherish the moments, the small, the serene,

"The cups of tea, the spaces between.

For love, my dears, is in acts, in deeds,

Not in objects, not in needless greeds.

It's s in the giving of ourselves, whole and true,

In actions, in words, in what we do.

So, this Valentine's, let's vow anew,

To love in actions, in what we pursue.

Let's strip the day of its commercial sheen,

And find the heart, the soul, the unseen.

For love, in its truth, is a quiet power,

A beacon bright in the darkest hour.

"Love," I say, "is all we need,

In thought, in deed, in every creed.

"Let's celebrate it, not just today,

But in every moment, in every way.

For love, true love, is a gift so divine,

Not just for Valentine's, but for all time.