One homemade heart
trimmed in frilly,
white lace,

One arrow,
one promise
of a sweet,
warm embrace…

Once it’s notched,
drawn,
and trained
on his chosen bullseye,
Cupid first
blows a kiss,
and then
lets
it
~~~ fly ~~~

I hope you weren’t expecting some steamy, mushy-gushy, googley-eyes I’ll-love-you-until-the-stars-fall-from-the-sky Valentine’s Day poem, but how else could I direct your attention to an inspiring initiative that may speak to your heart as much as it does mine.

More fulfilling than chocolate bon-bons,

gifting a lightly used or new book encourages reading. It’s food for an inquisitive mind and a hungry soul. “The gift of a book is so much more than ‘just a book’. A book contains a dream and could be the thing that sparks a child to reach further and dream bigger.”

Imagine being six years old, loving to draw, but believing your art stinks and then finding Peter Reynold’s ISH on your doorstep or being twelve, immigrating to a foreign country, and having Shaun Tan’s THE ARRIVAL pressed into your hands to help ease the sense of strangeness that surrounds you. International Book Giving Day is an opportunity to change someone’s life. Check out this project as proof.

Wherever you are in our wide, wide world, won’t you join me in putting a book in a child’s hand? We just might plant a smidgen of hope in his heart, put a smile on her face, or spark something in them that is beyond anything we could ever imagine. Be a part of making this initiative a huge success.

You don’t need to dress up for the occasion,
but I sure could use the company…