Small children delight in big red hearts sent just to them, the more the merrier. Aging relatives might get just one valentine â€" and it can be from us! A teacher who inspired us to get to where we are now, a kind neighbor who brought soup when we were ill â€" do we remember them? Opportunities are endless.

A granddaughter sent me such a kind message for my recent birthday that I cried with joy and vowed to work on becoming the person she described in her birthday greeting. She need never send me a valentine; I will keep the birthday message to read whenever I need a cheering up. If we all could send such greetings, whether for Valentine's Day, a birthday, or any day at all, it can make a lasting impression on those we love.

Have we recently sent anyone a greeting â€" of any kind â€" that they might set aside for their "one room?" My "one room" is a place I keep in mind for my treasures should my last years revolve around just one room. No matter how spacious a home we may have now, not one of us can be certain we won't eventually downsize to just one room.

I have already identified what would accompany me to bring joy to that special room. My treasures include a giant paper maché rabbit, which I've had for for more than 30 years. I bought it in Duck, N.C. where I vacationed for years. I love it as much today as I did on day one â€" perhaps more. At present, it is my largest memento designated for that room.

Each memento is associated with a happy memory, and there is usually a person involved. The rabbit greeted friends returning from golfing the day I brought "Doc Harrington' to the beach house. The golfers stood in the entry amazed at the giant rabbit. My dear friend John Thompson's comment stayed with me these many years. Always the gentleman, John exclaimed, "Wow! And might I ask what it cost?" I told him a few hundred and he replied, "What a bargain!" Everyone had a grand laugh and John's mirth is part of what makes the rabbit so dear to me.

Life is full of grand gestures. But I believe it is the little delightful moments that remain in our hearts forever. The reason we spend so many hours at Ann's Hallmark attests to how many of us know what carefully selected words can mean to someone special.

Even a call that says "I love you" can live in a heart forever, and none of us knows when forever begins or ends. Let's all think of Valentine's Day as a chance â€" be it the first or the last with someone we love â€" to make certain our love is communicated.

If it matters to us, it matters to others.