Hope's Homestead: Put A Little Love in Your Heart

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Happy Valentine's Day!

A few nights ago, I was packing up care packages for each of our older children, who are all living in Victoria, on Vancouver Island. Our two sons, Mitchell and Harrison, are at University and our oldest daughter, Alyssa, is working as a teacher and a writer.

I miss them.

I miss them terribly.

My heart is thrumming a longing beat, sitting outside the tight drum of my chest. I wonder if people I meet sense the deep ache inside of me? I've been really good ever since saying goodbye to them after Christmas, after all I stay busy with our five children still at home. But our family has always celebrated Valentine's day in a special way and I miss knowing they won't find chocolate outside of their bedroom door tomorrow.

So I pack up small boxes loaded with treats uniquely chosen for each of them. Things, even if they had extra money, they would not purchase. Chocolate for sure, and other small treasures. I know it's not environmentally the best choice. My husband tells me he will send them a bit of money and each of them can pick up a treat but I know they won't. I know that each of them lives close to their pocket book and the extra money will just go into paying their bills or buying their necessities.

As I place each item in the box, I add a note and share a back story on the things selected. It's going to cost a small fortune in shipping. But I am visualizing their smiles as they open their box and the joy in their eyes, as they discover treats chosen just for them. Thinking about their heart filling up, takes the ache out of mine.

I think a person loves better after experiencing loss. I've lost many people in my life. My dad as a young child, my grandparents, friends, aunts, uncles, pets. I've lost babies too. And six years ago, at the end of this month, I lost my mom.

Losing those you love is not an easy experience. The grief can be overwhelming and can take you to the darkest places in your life. By the time, my mom passed away though, I had come to the belief that we are souls first, living an earthly existence. Having that belief makes it easier for me to say goodbye for I know she only left her body, but her spirit didn't leave me. I can still feel the vibration of her love around me and that is something I want to share with our children.

Especially the ones who won't be with me this Valentine's day. I want to put a little love into their heart.

I hope it bubbles up and spills from their hearts and flows into all the people in their life and continues to spread throughout the world. And by the end of the day, the whole world is harmonizing with that humming feeling of love.

We will all being humming with, "Bhava" which is the sanskrit word for love as a process or as a feeling or state of being.

This past weekend was extra long because of our Provincial family day. The kids worked on making homemade Valentine's day cards...notice the girl's smiles...they are starting to lose teeth!


Most people do way more than we do at Valentine's but here the kids are making cards and putting a sucker in each card. Between them they made 66 cards. In their teacher's card they tapped a red ball point pen.