I almost forgot it was Valentine’s day until my assistant asked me if I was going to say something about the “big holiday” coming up. I really had to think. What holiday?

Perhaps I’ve erased it from my mind since my ex-husband refused to acknowledge it. He claimed it was a “made up” holiday by Hallmark to guilt men into spending money. He wanted no part of it.

So I stopped expecting roses and romantic messages written from the heart in cards. I thought—Maybe he was right. Maybe it is all invented for profit. But it turns out, he was wrong.

Valentine’s Day is in honor of a real person who believed in love. 

Back in the Roman days under Claudius the Cruel, the emperor observed men were reluctant to leave their wives and children to join the military. So while he outlawed marriage, the priest Valentine performed sacred unions in secret. Eventually his treason was discovered and he was executed on February 14, 270 CE, St. Valentine’s Day.

He gave his life for love. All of us do. 

Rarely in our lives does the sky reflect the “all or nothing for love” spirit as now. Five planets stack the sign of sidereal Capricorn as I write, forming a stellium. A stellium brings everything into focus, to your “ultimate concern.” 

When you eliminate everything non-essential from your life, it comes down to one non-negotiable thing: love. 

I refuse to live without it. I refuse to let a single day go without acknowledging its supreme importance in my life, the lives of my clients, the lives of my dogs and practically everyone I know.

If you think it’s owned and given by another person, you’re mistaken. No one can give or take away your love. It’s the one thing that unites us with the heavens.

We were born in love and we’ll die in love. 

The stellium is a symbol for how to live in love. It teaches us to make love your one-pointed focus. Cupid has to pull his bow strings all the back to the heart to reach his target in your heart. And you have to do the same to reach all your life’s goals. Success and love are the same thing. 

Astrologically, February is a month to follow your heart’s desires only. All the planets merge into one energy. It’s what you want more than anything else. If you have trouble identifying what that is, imagine this is the moment of death and you’re reviewing everything that’s happened to you. It’s the one thing you’ll regret the most not having experienced. 

And like the martyr St. Valentine, that one thing that matters above all else requires sacrifice. You will lose your head when you base everything on love. The vexing thing is that once having lost it, you’d gladly give it again.

All lovers understand this paradox. In the final scene of Harold and Maude, Harold is distraught to learn that his love will die. “But I love you,” he pleaded as he held her fading hand. “That’s wonderful, Harold,” Maude responded. “Go and love some more.”

Go and love some more.