Did you hear about the romance in the tropical fish tank? It was a case of guppy love.

I suppose this is that day where love is in the air. That's right. It is Valentine's Day, February 14, 2012. Let's hope that we are people who show love year round, but it is not a bad idea to be reminded of the blessings that God has given to us, especially in our mate. That photo is of my darling wife and myself and I suppose it could be called the before and after. Here's my official caption: "Happy Valentine's to my one and only. She is a remarkable woman and I thank God for her every day and for Him putting us together. This is our 50th year of exchanging cards, 48 of them as a married couple. Please don't send any remarks about how beautiful she still is along with your questions about what happened to me. One fellow the other day saw the photo on my computer background and said something like that and then added how that I obviously have had a pretty tough life. Thank you very much for the vote of confidence!" That's okay and if I stopped to think about it, at my age, I might forget to get started again. Don't get me wrong. We would be the first to say that had God not held us together, there's no telling what kind of story we would have to tell. Therefore, we actually honor Him on this day devoted to love because He has worked in our hearts and allowed us these many years of being together. Happy Valentine's Sweetheart, because no matter how I look at it, Baby you are still the greatest!

I actually sent that same photo of us to our hometown newspaper over in Louisiana and they actually published it. I was talking to my mom Sunday evening and she told me it was in the Leesville Leader. They had asked for readers to submit Valentine's photos and since I do read their online edition, I sent it along with a caption to them. My wife overheard the conversation and wanted to know exactly what photo I had sent. I told her it was more or less a before and after shot. She said she hoped it wasn't that one of us when we were just kids taken at the fair, right after we had started going together. Bingo! How is it that those kinds of loaded questions seem always to be exactly on target. My mom will save that paper for us. I am very thankful for the wife I have. It's okay with me if people know that. I know in Genesis Chapter 2, it says that a man will leave his parents and in so doing he will cleave or cling to his wife. I suppose it was somewhat of a surprise that we embraced that verse when I was so young. I joke about how that I had to finish raising her but since I was only a year older, I suppose that begs the question of who finished raising me. Through it all, over these many years, she has been a woman of integrity and grace. As far as what happened to me, you should remember that I was in a head on collision once and went through the windshield. See there. There is an explanation! But as you can tell, it doesn't bother me at all, not in the least, it doesn't, that is, it doesn't bother me, bother me, bother me.

Today's love talk has completely changed. I now say things like, "If you were to get rid of me, who would take care of all of your online activities like Medicare, retirement, taxes, and other assorted stuff?" Think about it. That is a statement we could have never conjured up, not that many years ago. And, you don't have to be young to take advantage of the benefits provided in this so called electronic age. My mother, who will be 88 in May, uses her computer every day. Since we installed her new laptop she now can check out Facebook which has proven to be both good and bad. Her children, her grandchildren, her great grandchildren, and maybe even one or two of her great great grands use Facebook. She reads what they post. Sometimes the lingo used and the inferences made cause her to be concerned and she does fret over their situations. Some of this is caused by the language gap in how young people say their stuff today. On the plus side, she gets to see photos daily and hear about accomplishments being achieved within her large extended brood. I think the blessings greatly outweigh the downside, however, these kiddos might well take to heart when she sends them some grandmotherly advice. And, when she feels compelled, that's exactly what she does. Just like any other concerned mom. Have a great Valentine's Day and may be crowed by God's love being experienced by us all. Amen.       ....More later.