If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
Today, imperially minded politicians, egged on by religious conservatives, are denying American citizens their basic right to marriage. Although claiming to be informed by God, they are simply using God as a patsy to support their own agenda of discrimination and prejudice.
Ever since the story of Adam, Eve and their Garden was crafted, readers have returned to the first couple time and again to figure out how all couples should act. On Valentine's Day, interpretations of their story serve both as cautionary tales and as inspiration for couples in the 21st century.
If only we could learn to see ourselves in the way our guardian angel sees us, our lives would be so much easier. We would love ourselves more and would look on others with more compassion, seeing their strengths rather than their weaknesses.
If we really want to end child labor and slavery in the West African cocoa industry, paying farmers half of a penny more per bar would go a long way in doing that.
Young love is passionate and big. Older love has more of a sweatshirt feel to it -- warm, soft and so very familiar. In the 32 years I have known my husband, our love has morphed into something so comfortable that I can't imagine my life without him. I had never imagined his life without me.
It's funny to think it was just five short years ago that I brought my oldest son to his very first preschool Valentine's Day celebration. He was so excited and I was just an emotional mama watching him reach yet another milestone.
All of us long for healthy relationships. We want to wake up next to that one individual person whom we can think of -- and call -- the love of our lives.
Why is it that Valentine's Day has become the much-scorned "ugly stepsister" of all the holidays? Most of us loathe V-Day when we're single and then roll our eyes over it when we're coupled up.
The very best love stories, I think, are of conflict resolved. And all the baby (or big kid) steps it took to get there.
When we were given Athena's photo from her orphanage in the same week that you discovered your pregnancy, we crossed the Rubicon. Yes, of course (says every parent in America), having children changes you in a ways that are so unpredictable as to be surreal.
Love is like the seed that is in itself. It multiplies, elevates, and corrects errors, especially the erroneous thinking that those who are deficient in love have about themselves.
The world is full of people who wish they let their spouses know how much they care every morning, but instead remind each other of the day's logistics. It's full of parents who mean to say "I'm proud of you" but instead spend the time asking about homework. We need reminders.
Instead of bringing you a great sense of joy and intimacy, this so-called celebration feels more about absence or loss. You find yourself thinking, "I don't have a valentine." What do you mean you don't have a valentine?
This Valentine's Day, let's celebrate our freedom to love and pay tribute to those brave souls who helped pave the way. Here are famous quotations about love from some of the most famous literary queers.
I am hopeful that the combination of an unprecedented female leadership in Congress and the opportunity for our own voices to break through will make sure women's rights and status in society are fully equal to men's and truly secure all over the world.
At some point down the road, there will be a girl they love more than me. Or maybe just differently. And over the next few years, my job as a parent is to shepherd them through that process, all the while with my heart tethered to theirs.
