Remember how excited you used to get when you would be sitting on the bus on your way home from school with a personally decorated brown bag of valentines on your lab, and belly full of candy? When we were kids we didn’t feel left out, or unloved when it came to valentine’s day. Your teacher handed out a list to your parents, or guardians and then you gave a Valentine to everyone in your class. I mean you definitely did hand select which ones went to whom, and your best friend always got the prettiest one, and your crush always got the most neutrally expressive or least lovey dovey card in lot.

Valentine’s Day wasn’t about being single or feeling alienated it was just about expressing and telling people how awesome you thought they were. Whether it was through candy, glitter (yes I was that kid), stickers, or a valentine. 

Growing up sucks there’s no question. You have bills to pay, you have to get up for work in the morning, and above all else you have responsibility. Everyone is going about their day and living their own lives. Add social media into the mix and you get a recipe for the loneliest of disasters. People think that because they see what you ate for breakfast that they are connected to you in some way, but sometimes you just want to share a conversation over coffee or hug another human being. 

Now more than ever we need to take the time to check in with the people we care about, and not just our life partners I mean everyone. These cold winter months bring out the recluse in all of us, but we really do need to make the effort.

We love getting mail. Heck I see the mail carrier more than some of my friends. I gave him some Christmas chocolates weeks before Christmas, and I’m STILL trying to get a thank you gift to one of my friends since November. We are all VERY busy, but do you want to know what trumps all busyness?

Cards. You don’t need a planner to send a card, you don’t need to set up an appointment to send a card. Now that I think of it it’s actually kind of the most passive correspondence going (outside of a text of course). However, if you pick the right card, and include a personal and thoughtful inscription it can really get to people. Certainly more than my thank you gift that’s been sitting on my kitchen table for months.  

Before Christmas I was wrapping gifts (one of my favorite past times), and I stumbled upon a card I received from my great grandmother before I left home to go to university. She’s since passed away a number of years ago I mean she was 96 years old the little fart, but seeing her hand written script reaaaally got to me. I should preface this with the fact that I don’t cry very easily, but this card sent me over the edge. I was a blubbering mess. She was really dear to me, and always supported me, and I’ll never forget that. 

As you go about your day(s) just consider this, we never have enough time to do all the things we want to do, and although we have the best intentions it just doesn’t work that way. Taking a few minutes of your day to sign a card, and remind someone how much they mean to you could be something that melts their hearts today and even 12 years from tomorrow. 

Despite what you just read above I’m not an overly sappy person.  I find a lot of cards extremely cheesy, and just not at all a representation of what I would say or how I even feel. At Christmas time I was asked to pick up a card for someone and I literally came home empty handed because I wanted to barf reading half of them, and I rolled my eyes over the other half. I couldn’t help but think of the poor soul that had to read that garbage and the person that “meant it” apparently. Ugh. Yuck. 

You can imagine my excitement when a local company, Halifax Paper Hearts introduced themselves to me through email. Their cards are so cute, and funny that I immediately fell in love with them. From cards about donuts that reference Tom Cruise’s famous line “You Complete Me” from Jerry Maguire (find it here) to “We’re Better Together” featuring peanut butter & jelly on toast (find it here) I was hooked line and sinker. 

Whatever you’re looking to convey: gratitude, congratulations, or appreciation there are so many perfectly curated cards at Paper Hearts.  As well they arrive super quick, so if you order now you’ll get them before Valentine’s Day!

Hope you enjoyed today’s post, and remember Valentine’s Day isn’t just about outlandish gifts or over the top presents, it’s about experiences and showing the people around (all the people around you) you that you care. It shouldn’t take a commercial holiday to remind you of this, but this time of year I think we can all agree that we can use a little incentive to be a little kinder to each other.

*This post was sponsored by Paper Hearts, however all opinions expressed belong to the author.