Valentine’s in the Outback

I went to bed feeling a little forlorn about being single for Valentine’s for approximately the 32nd year in a row.

I woke up remembering some of the more memorable Valentine’s Days I’ve had, in Beijing and Mijas, in Los Angeles and Memphis, but mostly, ten years ago, in a tiny town outside of Darwin, Australia.

We were halfway through month 2 of an 11 month journey on the World Race. We were essentially in the middle of nowhere, a 90 minute drive back to civilization (which felt far in Australia… a few months later, 90 minutes seemed much closer when we were in the bush in Kenya, 5 hours away from the nearest big city).

We wanted to do something special, but it felt difficult with limited resources at our hands. I honestly don’t remember, 10 years later, if we did anything for the guys on our team.

But the guys on our team showed up in the sweetest way. They gave us candy and chocolate. We all went out to dinner at a breezy outdoor seafood pub, where we enjoyed fish burgers and I want to say, some wine coolers?

It was the first time I had gotten a Valentine from a boy. And even though it was utterly platonic, it was a sweet (literally) reminder of how loved we all are, just for being ourselves.

I may be single once again this Valentine’s Day, but I am full of love for these memories, and these lovely people I share a year of my life with. I am full of love for friends, for family, and for my sweet puppy. I am (mostly) full of hope that maybe next Valentine’s Day will be different, and even if it isn’t, at least I have these memories of being loved to remember I am always and forever loved and lovable.

On this day of love and celebration, I want you to know you are so very loved. I hope your heart day is full of happy, joy, and wonder, at what a crazy thing it is to be loved, and to love in return.