Rebel Rousing with Amy: Love the Micro-Moments

Amy reflects on the month of love, V-day, and the power of micro-moments.

It’s February, which means boxes of chocolates, and balloons, and the light existential dread that maybe your relationship is sort-of, ever so slightly on auto-pilot. Just me?

I’ve never been a big Valentine’s Day fan. It screams of fabrication and PDA but I’ll admit, being in this business, I’ve started getting a little soft spot for it. Having a kid does that to you, too. This year, my son, Arlo, and I decided to make cookies for his daycare class and our neighbors. It was like Christmas morning delivering them to his friends. He was giddy with excitement sharing one of his favorite things (chocolate) with everyone else. Plus, it meant he got a lot of extra cookies, too. 

But at some point once we age out of school Valentines or those initial first few years with our partner, we stop putting such an emphasis on it all. The giddiness sort of wanes. At first, it's a bit of a relief. But then, the nostalgia sets in. In the space that big romantic gestures used to fill comes... practicality. “Shouldn’t we just save the money?” my husband I say to each other, “Getting a reservation is a nightmare” and “I don’t have anything fun to wear anyway to a nice night out.”

So, if a big grand gesture feels too far off, play it small. I’m a very big believer in finding the micro-moments. Leaning into the little stuff as it all ends up being the big stuff in this wild life. For many of us, we spend a lifetime with someone. We share our beds, our hearts, and our time with them, and keeping it fresh and interesting isn’t in the training manual but it’s a total requirement for the job.

While you’re flying by the seat of your pants, write a haiku and email it to your partner just because. Pick up some ice cream on the way home and sneak it in the freezer and surprise them for an after dinner treat. Clean the bathroom without saying a word about it.

Loving big doesn’t have to mean saying it loudly. Here’s to the seasons that some of us are in that require a quiet whisper, an “I love you” that echos without sound. Happy love month, Rebels - may it reverberate all year long.

XO,

Amy