This Valentine's Day brings a new day, it marks another year.  This year, however, I make every day count.  I do not take one for granted.  Today, I am grateful for my true Valentine.   Our relationship is like a great red wood.  It has weathered many storms, but our deep love for one another has helped it to grow deeper, taller, stronger; its scars add to the character and testament of our love for one another.  

I looked up the first poem I ever wrote to commemorate our first year together.  As we exchanged rings under the tree on our first anniversary, I read these words to you.  Today, in our twenty first year together and in our first year as a married couple, these words ring true in so many ways and take on a deeper level of meaning.  May these words continue to nourish from within, deep within the soil of our great redwood.    

I love you, my rock.  Happy Valentine's Day.

Our Future Secured Tightly Together

This is a symbol of my love and my commitment to you

So that you may always be reminded and can say I do

Place this ring on your finger and wear it in trust

And don’t take it off, but I understand if you must

You are all that I need; I could not ask for more

I want everyone to know you’re the one I adore

We have grown so much stronger and closer this past year

I am yours and you are mine, a commitment so clear

I can remember that day still fresh in my mind

I left and went ahead and you followed behind

After our dinner you asked me to your place to stay

I accepted and followed you one year ago this day

From that day on we began a journey side by side

Some cannot believe because in theirs they may hide

Although not recognized, we still share the same commitment

Some say our love is immoral, but I show no resentment

For if they saw us together, they would see just how real

Our love is truly powerful and we should not conceal

He brought us together and He recognizes our love

And they will see the truth the day we enter above

I take a vow to stand by you in sickness and in health

To support you if destitute and to share in any wealth

Through the years we will share seasons of good and bad weather

We’ll overcome, we’ll conquer and come through stronger together

So as a symbol of our commitment wear this band of gold

And take me as your life partner to have and to hold

My love will never falter and I’ve loved from the start

And I will be yours and you will be mine until death do we part

Greg Alan Gerrans - Poem Written December 28, 1994