How wise to interrupt February with Valentine’s Day – an opportunity to brighten these bleak winter days when natural light is in short supply. Often we use this holiday to express our love for others. This year let’s illuminate our own lives with love, light, and laughter.

I like squirrels. Watching them scurry up a tree and do their high wire act on the upper limbs fascinates me. I admire their keen eyesight, keen sense of smell, and keen hearing. They’re cute, fluffy, clever little rodents. They must have the psyche of daredevils otherwise why would they race across the road in front of my moving car challenging the fates and my braking reflex? But these traits are not what make me want to outwit them.

His signature catches my eye. What can we learn about Henry David Thoreau to explain the swagger in the tail of his first name and the period at the end of his last? To me, these strokes of the pen are statements about the man. My memories are fuzzy about this transcendental philosopher, so here’s what I’ve relearned: “Thoreau thought through our potential as human beings to live complete lives — lives that encompass joy, adventure, reflection, natural beauty, meaningful work, and relaxation.”

During the Martin Luther King remembrance last year, Byron Katie wrote this. It touched me deeply and it’s worth reading again.