It's February, It's LOVE

It was raining.

I watched the rivulets of water cascade, like tiny streams, down the Blazer's large windows.  The sky was cast a gloomy, charcoal-gray--the melancholy color of a springtime storm.  I listened to the steady swoosh-swoosh-swoosh of the wipers as they valiantly fought to keep the rain off the windshield.  I sat in stony silence, in the passenger seat, and stared out my watery window. 

The minutes passed.  The miles rushed by.  The storm refused to relent.  I tried to read billboards and exit signs, while James drove on in quiet frustration.

There were no wedding rings.  No anniversary dates.  No brown-eyed children.

It was just me. 

I thought about how furious and hurt I was as I folded my arms across my chest.  A tumultuous sea of emotions churned within my heart, invoked by our petty, "young love" quarrel.  I tightly clenched my teeth in an effort to keep the tears from flowing down my face.  I was not going to let him see me cry.

The windshield wipers kept time with my heartbeat.  Swoosh-swoosh-swoosh.  James cleared his throat, and gently spoke my name:  "Aleisha?"  I refused to turn my head.

He sighed and said, as sincerely as heaven, "You know I love you...Right?"

Something glorious happened to the 'feeling' in the car the moment those words were spoken.  The dark severity of the storm seemed to dissipate as I looked at James' cheek and the curvature of his jaw.  I saw a handsome face that had become as familiar to me as my own.  I saw genuine love there, too.

And that is what love does--it softens hearts and crushes contention.  It's a balm for pain and a guiding light for the lost.  It has the ability to uplift, motivate, and inspire.  It casts it's warmth on the bitter chill of loneliness.  It brings joy to the ordinary and "sparkle" to the mundane.  It can change a person for the better.

Think of the people in your life.  The people who never forget your birthday, who hold your hand when you're sad, who send you text messages about the newest kind of Oreos, who remind you that you're terrific when you feel otherwise, who take the time to listen, who support you by reading your "bloggy musings," who hug you and kiss you, who stand by your side when life's challenges overwhelm, who know your weaknesses and still see beauty, who make you happy and laugh often.

Those precious people.

They know you love them...Right?