#020 The Valentine Phantom Is My Hero

Valentine’s is my favorite day of the year.

This hasn’t always been so. I think when I was a teenager it was a lonely, awkward day. But ten or so years ago I woke up one cold, wintery February 14 in Montpelier, Vermont (my home until a few years ago) and walked into town.

First, I noticed a few red hearts posted on the bakery door and I thought, “Oh, that is sweet.” Then I noticed a few more red hearts in the library windows…then more at the bank, the liquor store, and church on the corner.

My heart began to stir. I didn’t know what was going on, but something out of the ordinary and evidently magical.

Then I realized—my own small heart beating wildly and growing larger by the moment—the WHOLE DOWNTOWN was plastered door-to-door, store front-to-store front, in RED HEARTS!

I’m talking about THOUSANDS OF HEARTS.

The Valentine Phantom Strikes

How had this happened? Who had done this? Was this some guy’s idea of how to woe back his estranged lover? Had the world transformed over night into a place that no longer celebrated war, but now celebrated love and hearts and art? Had I stepped out the door and entered some land like Oz but even better?

Move over Santa and the Tooth Fairy, this must be the work of the Valentine Phantom!

Here is the deal….

The Valentine Phantom comes year after year in the coldest, darkest hours of night and papers downtown Montpelier in hearts. Along with the hearts, s/he offers a poem that invites us to take these hearts and give them away, to spark love with love, and to brighten the cold bleak landscape of winter with bursts of bold red joy.

Valentine’s Day Greatness

The work of the Valentine Phantom is a Random Act of Greatness.

This is the kind of greatness we can all bring forward in our lives. Nothing can stop us from this. It doesn’t require that someone else do something first—that issues of poverty be solved, that justice be served. We can just decide—anonymously or with our name attached—to give our bright spark of love away right now.

The heart photo at the top is one of these special hearts. I took one home with me.

Montpelier is the capital of Vermont, but it is also a small town.

Each year the local newspaper does a story about the appearance of the mysterious hearts and asks the police and fireman if they noticed any strange activity in the early morning hours of February 14^th. They always say, “Nope, didn’t see anything unusual. Quiet night.” And then I imagine them giving a little wink to the reporter.

This is an act of vandalism everyone in the community supports.

Now that I no longer live in Montpelier I make a point of visiting each year on February 14^th. I’m here today to soak up the color and see the smiles on everyone’s faces. If you aren’t in town to stroll around the love filled streets with me you can get a little glimmer into the sweetness by watching this short music video.

How are you sparking love today?

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Editor’s Note: My heartfelt thanks to Jasmine Lamb for sharing this amazing story and providing the image and video.

Jasmine dishes out love and wisdom at her site All is Listening where she offers people the resources to make a life they love and love the life they have. She is also the organizer and creator of the Love Sparks Blogging Festival that she dedicates to the Valentine Phantom.

This Random Act of Greatness is a proud contributor to Jasmine’s Love Sparks Blogging Festival project.