By Nadia Al-Samarrie

I have always felt that Valentine’s is a day to say, “I love you,” to my friends and family. I deliver this message with a text, a quick face-time chat, email, or snail mail-whatever medium I know the recipients use to communicate.

The clichéd Valentine’s dinner, gifts, flowers, chocolate, and jewelry are fine, but do we need to buy something? Isn’t unconditional love the best gift we can deliver one another? What if Valentine’s Day was a day for forgiving? Can you imagine hundreds of thousands of people putting their egos aside despite something done or said to them in the past that created a wall they never anticipated could come down?

Compound the ability to forgive year after year. I can confidently say that there certainly would be more love between everyone. As we forgive others for not doing or saying the right thing, we permit our friends and family to love themselves. Letting go of the past and attachments to memories of moments that hurt us, is what heals the heart. Our pool of Valentine’s love becomes much more profound.

I wish you a day of love and forgiveness. Even if reaching out seems hard. Say who you forgive out loud to yourself and make it a mantra until you dare to call the loved one that has left you with a sore heart.