Love Letters

Back several years ago, my dear friend Barbara got tickets for our birthdays (We were born two weeks apart.) to see AR Gurney's Love Letters in Boston with Charlton Heston. It was one of my most memorable trips to the theater, not only because the play is one of my favorites, but also because we literally had front row seats. In fact, my seat was directly under Mr. Heston's podium.

Now, I must confess, I do not agree with Mr. Heston's politics, but the man has an undeniable presence on stage. The performance was wonderful; I cried at the end, which will surprise no one! Several years later, I had the good fortune to be able to perform Love Letters opposite my thespian friend, Tom at a local retirement community in Maine.

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What is it about Love Letters that is so intriguing? For me, it is the give and take of communication between two people over many years. Little notes that sometimes have few words but great meaning.

For those who do not know the play, the plot follows two people from childhood, through adolescence and into adulthood. Their love/hate relationship is sometimes funny, often profound and ultimately heartbreaking. However, for me, Gurney is able to show how love lost can still be found, unexpectedly.

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Sending little notes has been a habit of mine for as long as I can remember. I enjoy taking the time to sit and jot a quick message to someone, just because. When my Mother was alive, I often sent her little cards or pictures with quick notes that said things like, "Thanks for being my Mom."

My daughters, when they were young, would leave love notes on my bed or bureau. Some of my favorites include, "Dear Mommy, Sorry you are sick. Get better soon!" and, "Dear Mom, I love you. God loves you, too. Love, love, love!" Not to mention, "Dear Ma, Thanks for everything." and "Dear Mom, Please don't ever, never, ever again leave my sister to watch us. She is crazy!"(This one I could do a blog post on all by itself!) I have kept everyone. When I am feeling blue, I pull them out and read them. I laugh, I cry, I feel so loved!

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The man of my dreams leaves me love notes, too. His are found in the most unexpected places, like inside my purse, or wrapped in a zip lock bag in the bottom of my lunch, or even under my pillow. He once wrote to me on a block of wood when we were renovating our Enchanted Cottage, leaving it on the table next to my tea. Yes, I have kept them all. In fact, for quite some time, I had one of his notes hanging up by my desk. It read, "Linda is Love." What a beautiful testament to our life together! How wonderful if we all saw each other as "Love."

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I know that with instant messaging, Twitter and all, sending hand written notes to those we love is not part of our day to day practice...but wouldn't it be nice to take a moment and jot down a sweet nothing for someone in your life?

Don't Regret What I Did For Love

Back in the 70's, I learned about the musical, A Chorus Line. It received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1976. The one song that touched me then, and still hits my heartstrings is "What I Did For Love," mainly because it says that no matter what, when it comes to Love, never regret. Love is more powerful than that; Love has more understanding, forgiveness, and acceptance.

I find myself humming the words to this song from time to time. It is like a subconscious reminder that if Love is at the center of what I do, then there are no regrets, even when things fail to materialize, as I would like them; even when relationships fall apart. If I lived my life centered in Love then there are no regrets. Love is always there, always remembered, and always ready to hold us up.

Of course, it is sometimes like whispering sweet nothings into the ears of a manikin getting folks to understand that this is not the sickly-sweet-gooey-greeting card love that appears in the movies and between the glossy pages of various magazines . The Love I speak of is the kind that transforms. It is a Love that can change lives, and worlds.

St. Valentine's Day comes this week. It is not one of my favorite holidays. For me, creating one day a year to recognize those we love is ludicrous! Love is, to steal a saying from the corporate world, 24/7. You can't turn it off and on like a faucet. Love, the unconditional kind that we are all supposed to be striving for, is bigger than that.

So, in the words of the song, "Kiss today goodbye, the sweetness and the sorrow...I can't regret what I did for love...Look, my eyes are dry! The gift was ours to borrow...I won't forget what I did for love...Love is never gone. As we travel on, Love's what we'll remember...we did what we had to do. Won't forget, can't regret what I did for Love!"