Valentine Memories

The thought of Valentine’s Day brings smiles and warmth to young and old. Memories of cutting little Valentine’s cards and writing them to friends, events and hoopla with red and pink ribbon abounding, and chocolate everywhere! Ah, warms the heart it does - and that’s a good thing this time of year…

Maybe you’re lucky enough to have a few warm memories tucked away that include your horses and other companion animals. Frosty breath in the snappy air, bareback rides oh so toasty on the legs, and the dogs running alongside playing flip-the-snow with their noses all funny and wrinkled. Long walks – all bundled up and oohing and aahing over the branches and twigs wearing their magical diamond coats and shining their sunlit smiles. Unique tracks in the snow that stop you in your own, to ask yourself, who goes there? Perhaps you are blessed enough to have children around you to share your wonder with and to make stories together.

Well, whatever your memories are, it’s a sure bet that nature is included in them in some fashion!

Love has so many faces. Love is the Hollywood tale – yes indeed. But Valentine’s Day is about any one and any way of loving! It’s the dad showing his child how to strap on some cross country skis and laugh during the ups and downs (literally!) of learning. It’s the mom humming to her baby – pure love the sound. It’s the sweet dog licking her puppies and the cat purring and the tiny bird standing fast in the cold wind. It’s the skiffing sound of the wind on the dry snow and the late afternoon shadows of the sun warming the land. It’s kind and gentle music or a soft word and compassionate glance.

The Natural Gait