Valentine’s day, you’re not far away, but you don’t scare me.
The dancing and singing stuffed animals can rush toward me.
Rose thorns dangle precariously close.
I will not choke on a chocolate or slip on the heart boxers
that have fallen off the shelf.
No paper cuts on candy boxes or carefully folded cards.
Valentine’s day, you don’t scare me.
I will not trip across a satin sheet.
No memories from another year will keep me from being productive.
No other hands lingering together will weaken the strength of mine.
I’ll take the full day of work and the knowledge
I am beautiful as who I am.
You don’t scare me Valentine’s day
because you don’t own love in an arrow or a lipstick kiss.
And there will be those words said carefully to someone who needs them on your day
because it is that day and that is good for that moment.
You don’t scare me Valentine’s Day.
I am not, not afraid because of what may be.
I am not afraid because of what is.
I will not escape the pop culture of it all around me,
but I will resist that it not seduce me into a desperate longing.
I may dance again with a lover or I may never know that touch again.
But…the heart that says my love,
beats in my chest,
to the rhythm of my life,
not to be defined by singlehood.
And I may miss…and I may cry and I may even feel
alone.
I am love, though, greater than I have ever known.
On This Path 