I receive so many products to review every single month, that it can become overwhelming. Or underwhelming as the case may be!
This month has been insane, but I wanted to bust out the video equipment and share this amazing Anavita creme with you! I use cremes in many different price points, and to me, it’s all about the science, so listen to the quick video and if you’re interested in learning more…the links are provided below!
The other night I checked the mail in the rain after I got home. I flipped through it all quickly once inside the house. I said hello to the babies and Ken as I noticed that we had an envelope from the IRS addressed to my husband and another woman. An envelope from the IRS addressed to your husband and another woman is probably never a good thing. I decided he must have filed taxes this year with his secret second wife that he had hidden from me on the other side of town. I suppose I wasn’t supposed to see the mail. I decided to get some comfy clothes on before dealing with the mail and while he finished getting dinner ready. I figured I would investigate this secret wife thing after dinner.
I opened the IRS notice eventually after we ate and discovered that yes…his taxes had been filed as “Married, Filing Jointly” with Maria “Blank.” I asked him who Maria “Blank” was, and of course he stated that he didn’t know. We, at this juncture, had yet to file jointly and were planning on this being our first year.
As it turns out, the IRS had sent us this confirmation letter, because a red flag was issued before the IRS would deposit a tax refund for thousands of dollars into the bank account submitted to them on an electronic return. My husband has not gotten a tax refund check in years, so that is one of the things that alerted the IRS to proceed with electronic payment cautiously. They performed a soft credit check, which enables the IRS to gather information such as current address or place of business or work. Apparently the information submitted did not correspond.
The next morning, Ken was able to sit on hold with the IRS for two hours and finally get in touch with a live human being. They were able to verify that he was not married to Maria “Blank” that he did not file the fraudulent return and they were able to put a stop on the pending payment for thousands which was bound for Maria’s bank account or prepaid Visa card. (The really good news was that I wasn’t going to have to file for divorce or murder my husband.) The representative he spoke with on the phone, also claimed that they would be attempting to arrest and prosecute the individual or individuals responsible for the fraud.
The reality of an arrest is actually highly unlikely, as I learned after doing research on the rampant issue of tax refund fraud this year in the US. It is a problem that is costing tax payers billions of dollars. I think it is the most ridiculous thing that the IRS has done, to allow immediate refunds through the internet into accounts or even onto prepaid Visa cards. Most of the articles I’ve read on this type of crime, indicate that users who had previously used the electronic filing methods, such as Turbo Tax, have predominantly been the victims of these crimes. I’ve done my taxes personally, by hand and submitted through the mail for the past 5 years, after catching huge mistakes on my taxes one year by my CPA ,so I wouldn’t be a likely victim of such fraud. The IRS suggests that you do your taxes quickly, in order to keep the criminals from being able to use your information for their fraudulent returns because if yours is done first, it would flag and stop any second attempt to collect. In our case, we were in no rush to file this year, because again, it’s not like we are getting anything back.
The IRS Tax Return system is flawed at best, because it’s set up for trustworthy people to have ease of access to a speedy return. The insanity of letting people have their money sent electronically to a debit card, instead of a bank account is absurdity. Ending that program would instantly save millions. To file a tax return electronically, all someone needs is a name, date of birth and an SSN. The IRS accepts tax filings as soon as Jan. 1, but employers aren’t required to submit correct employment information to the agency until March, by which time roughly half of all refunds have been paid out. (For that matter, the IRS doesn’t begin matching employer-submitted data to tax returns until the summer.)
The really crappy part about all of this, fellow Americans…is that this is our money that is being lost. Some articles and research claims that “gangs outside the country” which to me, is code for “ISIS” -is who is said to be behind the hack attacks that have been responsible for the sensitive data leaks. The country is losing hundreds of millions of our dollars, and if it’s not through this type of fraud, then it’s through the fresh illegals that were recently issued social security numbers and have been rushing to file taxes and get backs thousands per family for credits and benefits that Joe Average is not entitled to. We are losing going and coming. Earning, spending, saving… it doesn’t matter. If you are middle class then you are paying others to come to this country and mindlessly make babies. A family of four can come over, make $18,000 and get back $7000 in the form of a tax refund. There is absolutely no reason that non citizens should be getting back more than they even paid in.
The reality is that this country is broke. Obviously after this record level of tax fraud, we will be even more broke, if that’s possible. Tax Fraud doesn’t mean what it used to. It used to be defined as Harry not admitting to $30,000 in cash earnings or perhaps a small American business getting a bit too liberal with their write offs. This is different. This is bigger. Do the math, people. This is critical.
That’s my tax rant. I don’t mean to be negative sounding, but I do believe in reality and educating yourself. Do some research and learn about the ways to protect your personal information. I’ve included some interesting articles on this type of fraud below. If you read these articles you will be shocked, but there are valuable tips on how to avoid getting your information stolen.
http://krebsonsecurity.com/2015/02/the-rise-in-state-tax-refundfraud
http://moneymorning.com/tag/tax-refund-fraud-2015/
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/11/your-money/steps-to-protect-your-tax-data-as-refund-fraud-spreads.html?_r=0
http://www.nbcnews.com/business/taxes/tax-refund-fraud-soaring-little-irs-can-do-n304951
A friend and I were recently having a funny discussion about the perils of hiring staff when you don’t actually know a lot about hiring. We began joking about performing an intelligence test as well as a test for technological comprehension and how it’s needed in this day and age, depending on the company’s expectations.
While we all know there are things you can not ask a candidate, I’ve found that some interviewers make the mistake of talking too much, and listening very little. In any typical interview, you could easily listen for cues as to positive character traits as the applicant speaks throughout the interview process.
For years I was involved in a lot of different types of hiring, but mainly it was retail related hiring. Occasionally, I would travel to new cities and have to do a lot of hiring, firing, restructuring and some super intensive power training for a couple of the retail chains that I worked for.
Before that, I worked in the office of my father’s construction related company during my college years and watched him make hiring mistake after hiring mistake…all were very costly. That is where I first learned the importance of hiring more on the basis of integrity than for skill set. The bookkeeper was embezzling, the shop mechanic was being paid by a competitor to sabotage our trucking equipment as part of a hostile takeover attempt by a competitor, one salesman would turn in dinner expense receipts for Sunday brunch with his girlfriend and her child, another salesman was getting paid by us, but selling jobs to our competitor. Basically, we were losing thousands of dollars per month just from internal issues.
People with integrity sometimes fail to realize that everyone does not also possess it. They often make the mistake to assume that everyone is like them. It is the number one thing I look for in the hiring process, Integrity or lack thereof. My father based his hiring on skill set alone as opposed to worrying with the issue of integrity. Lack of integrity can do you in, and put you under.
My husband and I debate on this issue all the time, as he typically has an innate tendency to believe the best in every person who comes along, wanting to work for his tennis coaching business, or do some sort of partnership. I am the one who has to run background intel and then beg him to understand that when a person lies, and claims to have a Masters degree or years of in depth experience…this is going to be a bad hiring experience.
I’ve been right 100% of the time. It’s taken him years to understand that I developed the hiring skill after years and years of experience. Poor choices can cost you a lot of profits, and even tank your business. It doesn’t matter what type of employee you are seeking, integrity is always a key component.
In training managers on the top things to look for to be able to hire at a winning ratio (with a very small fail rate) I developed a list of the top 5 things to measure during an interview. I had originally shared theses thoughts in a Hiring and Succession planning class with my company. I thought I would share these facets of hiring with the universe since it’s a topic that continually gets brought up over the years as friends call with horror stories of bad hires.
In each case, if we retrace the initial interview, we can usually see the red flags that were overlooked. In most cases, we find that the red flags were there, the hiring manager just didn’t take heed. The common applicant is not typically skilled enough to hide the fact that they are a train wreck about to happen, so it’s up to the hiring manager to hire smart.
The funny thing is, as detrimental as hiring the right person can be to a company, I’ve noticed that 24 year olds, with 2 years of work experience have been doing initial interviews for big companies. A system is usually set in place in which the executive level manager is the last person that gets to see the final applicant pool, after it’s already been weeded down by lesser level employees. This makes no sense. Hiring is one of the most important jobs a company has within itself. Attempting to function well in the workplace without good quality people is hell. So enough with the ridiculous questions that you got out of that hiring manual! Have a real conversation styled interview and get to know the candidate.
Here are my 6 top hiring points to consider while interviewing and assessing your next candidate;
I know that you are constantly told that an employee’s personal life is none of your business, but it is the number one indicator of what you’re inviting into your workplace. Do you really think that a candidate with a problem riddled, unstable personal life is going to have any workplace stability? Usually not. While you never ask a candidate the specifics of their personal life, they usually spell it out for you throughout the interview. “I moved here” “then I moved there” “then I moved here,” unless it was specifically to grow for work or school related progress, most conservative people think twice before pulling up stakes and moving from state to state. I’ve found that those who are grounded, are grounded in every aspect of their lives. Another great question to ask is, “Do you have any pets?” It seems as if some of the most responsible people, are those who have had a pet for an extended period of time. A pet is work, and commitment. It’s a good sign as to a person’s follow through and level of commitment. I absolutely hate it when a candidate finds a way to mention an “ex” during an interview. Ugh. Turn off. Look for any signs of stability, follow through and commitment. While it is inappropriate to pry, it is appropriate to listen and allow the candidate to feel free to share whatever they feel important. You should be hoping for a candidate with a positive mindset in respect to any mention of their personal life.
2. INTELLECTUAL CURIOSITY
Ask you ask a candidate what they enjoy in their spare time, or about hobbies and interests…look for signs of Intellectual Curiosity. Do they know or care anything about the world? Politics? New tax code? Do they know who Dr Ben Carson is? They don’t have to like him, but just knowing who a person like Ben Carson is, shows signs of life at the intellectual level. Even possessing a desire to know what is going on in the Universe, outside of one’s own bubble, is a good indicator as to the level of intelligence you are dealing with. I have friends who don’t like to read or do not wish to know anything going on in the universe. They watch stupid cat or dog trick videos on You Tube in their spare time as a hobby. These people can still be great workers, but will be limited in growth potential. A college degree is not an accurate summation of intelligence in many cases. I know a person with a Psychology degree who is unemployable, dumb as a rock, and a recipient of disability due to his inability to function at a level deemed sane. I’ve had degreed individuals unable to figure their sales commission earned. Possessing no inner desire for knowledge is a key indicator of intelligence. Sorry, but typically you want a person who is self motivated to excel and do well in the workplace. Intellectually interested people generally are also self motivated to excel. Having interests in something outside of oneself is a key indicator of a person who will want to learn and grow at work, and typically intellectual curiosity is a true indicator of intelligence. Think about it…how smart could you be if you care nothing about the world that you live in and will a person like this be a good investment for your company?
3. HEALTHY MENTAL STATUS
Mental health can never be under appreciated in the work place. People often endure stressful situations at work. Do you want people that get rattled easily and can’t handle their emotions well in the workplace? A good way to test for one’s ability to cope with stress, is to ask simple questions during the course of your conversation, such as “How bad was the traffic on your way here? Did it bother you? Have you ever taken a road trip by yourself? Oh, really? Where did you go?” “Do you ever go out to dinner alone?”
As your conversation blossoms and your candidate begins to feel more comfortable with you, you will easily see and hear things like he/she is uncomfortable with driving out of town alone, traffic rattles them, they are comfortable keeping life very simple, in the box. What you are looking for is a sign that a person may be emotionally fragile. I’m sorry, but if a person gets freaked out by eating dinner out alone occasionally, they will have trouble being outgoing, which may be needed in certain work situations. As an employer, sometimes flexibility is expected of your employees. Generally, fragile people are not flexible. Any little kink to their regimen undermines their emotional stability.
It would also prove fruitful to be mindful of the individual’s personal filter or lack thereof. If a person is not able to remain within professional boundaries, it’s usually a sign of issues. Too much expressed emotion during a first meet will typically be an indicator of one who has emotions they can’t keep in check. If you are too controlling of the direction that the interview goes, you won’t get a chance to really hear and experience the individual. If they begin to run at the mouth, and can’t quit spilling their guts…good, you get to experience and learn more. This is what an interview is all about. You need to get a feel for the real, inner person you are interviewing. Real conversation is a good way to see through the interview persona people often put on.
A self aware and mindful person will shut up and wait for the next question. It’s best to have a true conversation with a candidate and get the clear picture before the hire, so you can decide if they will be a fit for you. Poor mental health is a bitch in the workplace. It’s also a Protected Class. Once it’s in, it can be disruptive to all. That’s why it’s very important to insure you are hiring correctly for the job and insuring that the candidate is a fit for the position and will be able to perform the tasks involved. Just sayin.
4. NATURALLY ORGANIZED
A good type of question to ask in an effort to get a true picture as to an individual’s natural organization level, is to simply ask, “Tell me about a typical day for you?”
A great candidate would reply, “ I get up at 6am every day because I make my husband breakfast and we walk the dog together before he goes to work. Then I have my free hour at my computer desk, where I read the news, check my emails, pay any bills if needed and peek at Pinterest for a few minutes before hitting the shower. I stop every morning at my corner Starbucks to get my skinny vanilla latte and I make it into work every day at 8:30. I take a bag lunch Monday thru Thursday, and eat out for a fancy lunch on Fridays! I’m usually home by 6. I force myself to hit the gym 4 days a week, unless something important is going on. I’m not going to lie though, I do give myself an hour of trashy reality T.V. before going to bed!” (I actually know someone who says all of this, except with the addition of every detail of every calorie she takes in for the day as well.)
The point here, is not so much that she goes to the gym. The point is the ritualism. Ritualism is in effect…organization. She has to have her morning coffee at her special stop, the dog gets walked with the spouse ritualistically every morning. She allows herself a free hour of relaxing, trashy reality T.V. and this shows she controls time well and has organization as a natural trait. When people do things in a certain way and time frame, they do so to insure they have peace of mind in that they accomplished their daily tasks. Don’t ever bother to ask a person if they are self motivated and organized in an interview, of course they will say yes. Again, have a conversation and learn who you’re talking to.
5. INTEGRITY
Integrity is the number one thing I look for in candidates. An employee with a lack of integrity will get you every time. Integrity, however, is probably the hardest component to measure in a new candidate. This is a conversation my husband and I go round and round over, when discussing whether or not to hire someone for the tennis management business he runs (with my expertise.) Other than having an at-length, conversation styled interview with people, what else can be done to measure integrity? Check people out. About 6 months ago, an individual approached my husband about doing a little partnership together. I researched the man, and discovered he had lied about having a Master’s Degree. His entire LinkedIn resume was a twisted fabrication. He also was caught with other lies and it was apparent that he had a Napoleon complex. He sought to make every word than came from his mouth paint a portrait of overwhelming fabulousness. Obvious issues. I was done with the possibility of working with him after that. (There’s a whole lot more to the story, but I will omit it here, but basically, it ended poorly.) My view is that people that lie are dangerous in the workplace. I know quite a few people who have careers based on complete fabrications. That’s alarming to me, and I want people with no moral code to be nowhere around me. If people lie about who they are and where they’ve been, then why expect honesty and morality in any other venue?
On the flip side, I’ve hired people with admittedly limited experience, trained them, promoted them and respected them, and was rewarded to see their careers grow, and they also helped me to be successful in my jobs as we worked together. Integrity is everything. I’ve rarely been disappointed by a person of integrity.
6. TECHNOLOGICAL APTITUDE
Since it is now 2015, I have to add a sixth key indicator for hiring well. Depending on your type of business, you’ll probably need people who have some measure of technological ability. Ask your candidate which social media accounts they use, or even what type of cell phone they use. That can be a huge indicator of their tech aptitude. The odds are absolutely zero, that an individual has a flip phone, but has enough tech savvy to do anything more than check an email account here or there. Do they know what Skype is? Have they used it? Do they pay their bills online? Depending on the expectations involved with the position you are hiring for, perhaps you want to discuss SEO or social media networking ideas just to get a clear and accurate picture of your candidate’s real level and understanding of today’s technology. You may think that people can be easily trained, but some people have learning road blocks, so be sure to hire people who will be able to meet your expectations.
I promise that if you begin to follow this hiring formula for any industry, you will see better retention, more in house promotion, and an improved bottom line for your company if your staffing decisions improve. Continuous trainings of new staff can be costly, and let’s face it…it’s embarrassing when your hiring skills are questioned due to a really bad hire here and there! Too many bad hires in the same business at the same time, can take down your empire. I’ve seen it.
It’s worth mentioning that some of these qualities are also helpful when considering future friends and mates!
When I was about 13, my parents became divorced. That was a good thing. Parents always use the, “I stayed for the kids” routine, but believe me…if you’re raising your children in a dysfunctional household in which there are late nights full of screaming matches (and to be fair, it was only my mother doing the screaming) then someone should go ahead a pack a bag. You’re doing more harm than good.
So in our case, it was best. Dad bought a house about 3 miles away, and life went forward.
Eventually, my father – who was young and extremely well off financially, married a total freaking hooker from hell. (Just keeping it real.) She was always causing problems and telling lies as she constantly manipulated. At one point, she asked me why my mother still used my dad’s last name. It was a rude and insulting question. She wanted to be the only Mrs. “Rich Man’s Wife” in the universe, however, unfortunately, my mother had two children and my mom wanted to keep her last name…especially after having it for 17 years and bearing children who shared the last name.
The woman was such a troll, that I rebelled, and changed my last name to my middle name. Stephanie Dawn became my name. I was rebelling against being associated with all of the insanity that came with the troll’s presence. (At one point, she informed me that the life insurance from my father was going to be split between my brother, myself, AND HER 6 YEAR OLD SON FROM ANOTHER MARRIAGE, after only being married about 2 years.) I told my dad this, and he was shocked. The insurance policy was for $6 million before she ever came into the picture, but it was divided between myself, my brother and my mother. She was all about the money and worried about who would get what. The funny thing was, how odd to constantly be daydreaming about an insurance policy? Hmmm. The joke was on her though, because in the end, through a series of events, there was NO money. No business, no insurance policy. Of course, she left shortly after it became clear that the money was gone forever. She didn’t sign up for that.
The dysfunction of having two women with the same last name, one a troll, the other a screaming, pissed ex wife… totally turned me off about the name game.
For years, I was Stephanie Dawn. My father jokingly referred to it as my stage name. I was pretty vocal about the decision to rise above the dysfunction and lift myself out of the abyss by trying to disassociate myself and not use my family name.
Then, I made the fabulous decision to get married at 21. I changed my last name, as all young ladies dream of. After a pretty ridiculous 12 year relationship, I left. I didn’t want a relationship, I’s wanted love.
Still very intelligent, I married again, about one year later to a man/boy with a host of serious emotional problems that I didn’t uncover until after we were married. Ugh. Yes, I changed my last name immediately after getting married. It lasted for 6 grueling years, which totally sucks because I should have left after the first 6 months. I just kept thinking I could help heal this person. While I wasn’t beat or anything, it was a very unhealthy relationship and I regret the entire ordeal. Remember this…most of the time, people will pull you down as you attempt to pull them up.
In an attempt to keep my world together through a divorce, I kept his last name. At the time, I felt I didn’t want to change it and have to go through the social security card, driver’s license, banking, job, and everything-else-you-have-to change scenario of being a divorced person. About 8 months after the divorce debacle ended, I decided to go have my name legally changed back to Stephanie Dawn, the name I crowned myself as a teen. It occurred to me that I was hanging on to my last name, as a way to appear as if I was ok. That I wasn’t broken by the whole crappy experience. I eventually realized I needed a fresh start from an emotional perspective. I’d uncovered some severe family issues from his tree, and his family quit speaking to me, which was hurtful. They knew everything he did to me, but didn’t remain friendly. I realized I needed his family name removed. I didn’t go back to my family name either. I’d wanted no family assigned demons to find me that were assigned to my family tree, no crappy ex husband’s family demons on me either….just my own person. My middle name was turned back into my last name, and that was it. Of course, I had to go to court, and prove I was not changing my name due to some illegal criminal past…but the judge let me change it…and I was reborn into Stephanie Dawn.
I kind of developed a coldness about the ownership issues I had with giving myself to a man that wasn’t worth it. Letting him put his name tag on me. I felt they didn’t deserve for me to carry their names and although I knew I’d be married again…I wasn’t sure if I’d ever want to take a man’s name again. Ugh. Just the thought of all that paperwork. More than that, would I end up regretting it as in the past?
Then, you fall in love. I mean, real love. In my opinion, I can best describe real love, as when two people love each other equally, in every way. After finding real love, you realize anything before might have been you loving someone, but perhaps they were not able to give back because they were not whole or damaged.
This time, when Ken and I became engaged, I had a real estate business in my name, so I decided to wait a while to legally change my name after marriage. I didn’t want to have to change tons of paperwork. Not only that, deep down I did want to wait a little to see how it went! A while, turned into 4 years.
Too many times we would travel, and I was proud that we were married, but as airport workers check your documents, it appeared as if I was just Ken’s hoochie mama side chick.
For a man to marry a woman, is a sign of respect. For a woman to take his name and wear it proudly is also a sign of respect. And then there is the union itself, and respecting that.
I also wanted to take his last name, for him. Men love that! It’s found to be a little insulting, and honestly it’s as if you’re not all in, or are possibly expecting the worst.
The social security worker who did my paperwork, wondered why I took so long to change the documents, I laughed and told her, “Well, I had to be sure it was gonna take,” which was my standard answer for everyone who ever asked why I had not legally changed it yet. It was funny, yet true.
Coach Ken is so happy and proud and we feel a little closer than before. I did it to honor him and he treats me like a wife, we are a team, and he lets me be who I am. We still fight over other things that he is constantly wrong about, but slowly I’m getting him trained! I got my new license and Social Security card in the mail this week and it’s official!
As for my dad…he still jokes about not having a daughter and the daughter that has no inheritance since she rejected the family name, and then we laugh. There is no inheritance, family name or not, he just likes to torture. Then I have to tell him that if he hadn’t married a troll, I wouldn’t have had to reject the name, and on and on. It’s a big joke.
I am now officially Mrs. Stephanie Sjoberg. I am letting go of the past and not letting others ruin my perspective on something that should be fun and romantic.
There is no better time of year, than the winter months to try out new eye cream. My reasoning on this point, is that the cold, dry air means your skin is even more thirsty than usual. It’s during this time of year, that you can see extra crinkles in the skin, due to the dry air so it’s easier to visually see results from the use of eye cream from day to day.
I’ve been playing around this season, trying out top eye cream brands. It seems that if there is true moisture going into the skin, I can see a difference the net morning with certain creams or gels.
The eyes are the first thing to go on the face as the years slip by, so this should always be a primary focus area for repair and moisture at any age.
I was excited to receive a Radha Beauty Intensive Youth Eye Gel to try out! I really was looking forward to using it, and to compare my appearance with some of the higher dollar eye creams I’ve currently been testing out.
I will say, I was excited about the results! My eye area has seemed very moisturized each morning upon my daily inspection in the mirror! I used it once at night, and then again in the morning, for additional results! And people, I am over 40, so I am hanging on and welcome any help possible that keeps me from feeling the need to inject chemicals into my face. (I am trying to wait until the last possible minute to resort to those types of procedures.)
After using and loving the eye gel, I decided to research and find out why exactly it worked so well. Here’s what I found out;
Contains a number a very powerful ingredients such as Plant Stem Cells, Matrixyl 3000, Hyaluronic Acid, Peptide Complex, Cucumber, Vitamin E, Aloe, MSM & More!
Radha Beauty’s Intensive Youth Eye Gel contains a innovative combination of ingredients for superior results. Plant Stem Cells enhance its strength to protect against sun damage and other external aggressors while Hyaluronic Acid hydrates the skin and plumps it up with moisture and Matrixyl 3000 firms the skin.
I’ve included the link to Radha’s Eye Gel on Amazon below, so that you can see the pricing and learn more! The price is amazing!
Happy Valentine’s Day! Or not. I have such an issue with Valentine’s Day, because it has been twisted into a thing that is exclusive to people in love and therefore leans towards the exclusion of those who are currently alone. It’s hurtful to many. I know, because I have been alone.
I remember being in high school, and it seemed absolutely everyone but me had tons of Valentines from friends and admirers. Ugh. I never had one. Not one. It was hurtful.
Actually, I would come home, and my mom would have tons of gifts and goodies spread out for me all over the table…so for years, she was my valentine.
Actually, in South America…my sister in law informs me that Valentine’s Day is to show love for friends…older ladies who are alone, girlfriends, etc. She actually has a party every year to show love for her friends, with this in mind. She is a fabulous party giver, and this year’s gathering was smaller than usual, but it was a blast being able to sit around and discuss girly things with her friends. Her party is always Valentine themed, with pink everywhere, gifts for attendees…etc. This year’s gift was a a flashy candle. Just a token of friendship.
So with that, I want to wish everyone who is alone, recently alone, alone for a damn long time…whatever the state of aloneness might be….Happy Valentine’s Day. You are loved.
You are loved by Father God. You are loved by someone that possibly you have not met yet. OR you were loved by someone who has left this earth. Everyone has their story. I choose to focus on being kind and especially sensitive to those who are alone at this time. It’s so hard because it appears as if everyone else’s life is perfect and full, except for yours.
Sometimes people are married, or in long term situations, but they are still alone emotionally. All that glitters isn’t gold, and alone can be many things.
So if you are alone, I am thinking of you. If everyone could think of two people they know who are not currently in a relationship, and reach out and surprise them with a small, thoughtful token, it would mean so much. That’s what I try to do every year, as my mom did for me when I was younger. Valentine’s Day should not be a yearly day of sadness for some, so especially if you are Valentineless….adjust your focus onto who you could treat special this week.
…love one another! (…and yes, I know that aloneness and Valentineless are not real words)
