Traditionally, Valentine’s Day is when we shower our loved ones with flowers, chocolates, and gifts as expressions of our love.

Expressions of love are fine.

But caring for love is better.

Today I want to inspire you to take care of your love. To treasure, pamper and exalt love to the highest place in your life.

I want to encourage you to look beyond a day of love to a lifetime of love. I want you to do this by honoring your body and emotions, and the body and emotions of your loved ones.

Because?

Today, people take love for granted. They devalue their bodies, deny their emotions, and invalidate the opinions of their loved ones. And when that happens, the love fades and the spirit withers.

That doesn’t have to be the story of your life.

Here are 10 ways to nurture and care for your love now and forever.

10 ways to take care of your love now and forever

In 1969, Dr. Leo Buscaglia taught his first class on love at the University of Southern California. His non-credit class, Love 1A, was in response to the tragic loss of one of his students to suicide. The news that she committed suicide had a huge impact on him and irrevocably changed his approach to love. “To love others you must first love yourself” became his mantra.

Here are five ways to care for your love this Valentine’s Day by honoring and loving your body and emotions:

1. Create balance and harmony in your life.

Balancing your needs is essential to take care of your love. It is important to know what you need and give yourself what you need every day. Work, play, rest, activity, contemplation, expression, everything must be in balance and harmony.

2. Speak your truth.

The truth is personal. It is also subjective. But it’s yours. Speak it. Say what you have to say when it’s right for you to say it. Speak for yourself. Acknowledge your wounds. Let people know your truths.

3. Trust your intuition.

That inner voice is your friend. He is wise. You have strength. You have a deep understanding and insight into what is right for you. Listen to your intuition. Act accordingly.

4. Nourish your body.

One of the best ways you can take care of your love is to nourish your body with healthy and satisfying foods. Instead of eating anything old, listen to your body. It will always inform you of what it needs to nourish itself.

5. Love your life.

You love what you do. Do what you love. This is the essence of what it means to be true to you. Stop doing what you don’t like. Stop trying to be someone you’re not and have the courage to live a life you love.

In The Daily Prophet, Khalil Gibran wrote: “Life without love is like a tree without flowers or fruit.”

Philosophers, writers, and poets speak of love as a quality that makes our experience richer, more colorful, alive, and meaningful. It transforms the mundane routines of our daily lives into something bigger and more meaningful. The experience of love connects us with all humanity and nature through time and space.

Here are five ways you can honor another person’s body and emotions:

6. Respect each other’s bodies.

Respect means only doing what feels respectable and honors the wishes of another. At all times. Throughout. From touching lightly to making love deeply.

7. Respect each other’s emotions and thoughts.

Respecting the emotions and thoughts of others does not mean that you agree with what they feel or say. It means that you listen to what they are expressing and you are validating their emotions and thoughts. Always validate. Never discard.

8. Trust each other’s intuition.

Just as I talked about the importance of trusting your intuition in my previous blog post, we should also trust the intuition of others. It’s not about being right. It’s about honoring what that little voice says within the other. Take it seriously. It is your truth and it needs to be accepted.

9. Lovingly support the other to meet their needs in a healthy way.

Notice that I did not say that you meet their needs. I said to support them in meeting their own needs. Do not laugh at their choices and do not manipulate them in another direction. Offer loving support even if you disagree.

10. Respect the integrity of the other.

You have your truth. And they too. While their truth may oppose your truth, that’s okay. Remember that each person has the right to his decisions and his truths. And the right to act on them. That is integrity.

This is the month of love. The moment when we reflect on our inner love and how we express that love to others. Take care of your love. Because if you don’t, you will miss out on the most beautiful experience in life: deep and lasting love. So this month treasure it, cherish it, and exalt love to the highest place in your life with these 10 tips on how to care for your love.