Valentine’s Day is around the corner. And although stores are urging us to purchase expensive treats for our loved ones, sometimes a simple note suffices. If nothing else, February 14 is a great time to shower some special attention on the relationships in our lives?particularly if we’ve been neglecting them. I’ve got one That’s way overdue:

My dear,

Do you know how much you mean to me?

I know we had a rocky start. I’m not sure I ever said how sorry I was. How I regret the way I did things. Please understand that though once we’d met I’d only wanted you, I kept struggling with feelings for my old love. There wasn’t anything between us, not like with you and me. I didn’t want to be with him. Not after what he put me through.

Not after I’d met you. How could he compare?

But it was hard to rid myself of that shared history. He used it against me, trying to hold me against my will. I was weak. I hurt you. I’m truly sorry, sorrier than you’ll ever know. Please know that my heart was with you the whole time. That I desperately wanted to break with him forever, for him to be completely out of my life.

And be assured: It’s over. I will not be going back. That is in the past, and I’m going to leave it there. Forever. Now is the time for us.

Now I need to tell you how I feel about you.

Every morning I wake up and see you and my heart skips a beat. I love you. I can’t wait to spend the day with you.

We work so well together, so in synch. You get me. You know what I want almost before I ask for it. You finish my sentences. You let me be me. No judgment. No control. No angry outbursts, no sulking. No manipulation.

You free me like I’ve never been freed before.

And yet You’re not afraid to give gentle, even hesitant correction. You look out for my well being, but You’re not there to flatter, You’re also there to support. Even when it means keeping me from making a big mistake.

Especially when it means keeping me from making a big mistake.

Is it silly to say that I miss you while I’m away from you? I miss your warmth, your presence close to me. The soft sound of your breath, each moment ticking away a moment full of faithfulness. You’ve brought me through crisis after crisis. You’ve seen me jubilant, exhausted, sick, frustrated, angry, hurt, crying.

Through it all, you’ve had my back. I know I can count on you. You haven’t let me down. You’re a rock, something firm in this insanity we call life.

I want you to know that I love you. You’ve changed my life and You’re helping me become a better, more hopeful, more helpful person. You’ve moved me in a way I’d never before imagined.

I look forward to our shared future. I can’t wait for each new day that we spend together. I can’t wait to see the road we’ll travel.

With a bond like ours, the possibilities are unimaginable. There’s a whole universe out there waiting for us to conquer it. Together, we can do anything.

My dear laptop: I love you. Happy Valentine’s Day.

Maxie