Valentine's Day - Redeemed!

Valentines Day; always a dilemma. Why? Because I hold two opposed ideals in my head and heart: First, my conviction that "V-Day" is contrived, artificial, exclusively commercial and as plastic as it's possible to be... Then, next, my ongoing commitment to honor my wife, Rebekah, and to not make her a casualty of my felt need to protest a day she neither invented nor corrupted.

Consequently, I always do remember V-Day. But I try to do it in a manner that not only shows Rebekah how much I love her but also redeems the concept.

One of my problems with V-Day is this. I am deeply committed to the idea that my faith - if it is lived authentically, and therefore my life - if it is reflective of my faith, is necessarily counter-cultural, standing at odds much of the time with the values and the passions of our secular consumer-driven society. As a Jesus follower it is important that I NOT BLEND IN.

So what did I do this morning? I found a really cool card (no hearts or candy or anything involving the color red); I wrote a thoughtful four-paragraph message that expressed why Rebekah is, has been, and always will be the love of my life; and I gave her a gift that demonstrated that I know her and I pay attention to what she values.

Two pounds of Peet's Fair Trade Coffee and Peet's mugs (one each) to drink from. Why?

• We discovered Peets on the Pacific Northwest Coast on an amazing romantic road-trip; we can't drink Peet's without recapturing some of that experience.
• Peet's Fair Trade Coffee speaks to Rebekah's growing passion to end human trafficking.
• Two mugs says this is a part of our life together that is best shared.
• I serve Rebekah coffee in bed every morning - it's a "better-than-V-Day commitment I've offered her for closing in on thirty years
  

So, take that, cheap and tawdry sentiment. Even the world's tackiest holiday can be redeemed!

Love and blessings - DEREK