Valentine’s day and the Single Parent

For the first time in about 21 years…. (‘cos I got one last year!!) I will not be racing down to get the post on Valentine’s Day!  I am not expecting a Valentine’s card from ANYONE!!!!

No flowers, no champagne…. Nothing!  

There's something about Valentine's Day, which I suspect is rooted in my teenage years, that makes me feel a bit sad and lonely if I don't get a card.  And so, I can't help but admit that this year, there's a little bit of me that feels displaced.  

That said, I have to ask, do any of us really want a valentine’s greeting from someone who has fallen out of love with us, who sends us a card out of duty, or who wants something from us but gives nothing back? 

I sure as hell don’t!

And to be honest, that’s exactly what I had for years on end… So this year I’m going to celebrate a different kind of love.  And it’s the greatest love anyone can have…. The love of my children.

Dinner, Chez Lakin, on Tuesday night, will be a ménage a trios!  Me and my two divinely wonderful kids.  Candles, dinner, cards all round.  I might even stretch to a bunch of flowers for the table.  And when dinner is over, I’m going to vote that we all snuggle up under a blanket and watch a movie. 

And the best bit of all is that I won’t be disappointed!  If my kids decide to make me a card, it will be done with their unconditional love and I will cherish it, as I have cherished various things they’ve made me over the years.

At the outset, I said I felt displaced this Valentine’s Day, but on reflection, I realise that I am quite spoilt for love. 

Sometimes I get lonely.  Sometimes I miss having another adult to talk to in the evenings, to share a joke with or just watch TV.  But I am, without a doubt, spoilt for love. 

It is for this reason that I have no right be sad on Valentine’s Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to you all!

Lara Lakin