Chocolates and flowers, love poems and hearts … but Valentine’s Day is so much more than just a Hallmark Holiday!  It reminds us to honor the gift of relationships, which bring us much joy (sometimes pain) and, frequently, growth. Here are a few thoughts on relationships and love in celebration of Valentine’s Day.

Without relationships, we would have no mirror to see ourselves.  We would not have a sounding board against which to base our own experiences.  The people in our lives give us clues as to what we believe about ourselves. Hopefully, they are mirroring how much we express our real Self.

“Relationships with other people allow you to share experiences and perspectives, so that all can remember who they are … in relation to one another,” says Bruce D Schneider, Founder, iPEC Coaching (www.ipeccoaching.com). “We all have intimate, social, and professional relationships, and certainly we experience highs and lows in each of our relationships,” he adds. “In low times, it’s often the underlying values of each member in the relationship that are in conflict. Greater harmony and synthesis can be created by an understanding of the role that values play in relationships.”

When we are in the right relationship with ourselves, we can then enjoy and value other relationships for what they truly offer. Instead of coming from need and lack, we can realize that our relationships are gifts, helping us to relate to others in an empowering way.

Valentine’s Day offers us an opportunity to show gratitude to those in our lives who we value, and who ideally bring out the best in us.

“Remember the small moments,” comments D. Luke Iorio, CEO, iPEC (www.ipeccoaching.com). “For Valentine’s Day, we often get caught up in the big plans, the romantic dinner and evening, the perfect special gift. But really, isn’t it the small things that lead to the strongest relationships?  It’s doing a few extra chores around the house without being asked; it’s the random bouquet of flowers on Tuesday just because; it’s picking up your spouse’s favorite snack while at the store. The core message of Valentine’s Day can be expressed 365 days a year. The secret of Valentine’s Day is to remember all of the little things that we can do all year long for those that we care about.”

Tags: attitude, creativity, gratitude, intentions, opportunity, perspective, possibilities, Valentine's Day, values

This entry was posted on Monday, February 15th, 2010 at 12:25 pm and is filed under Current Affairs, Law of Being, Life Potentials. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.