The Cupid Project began as a very simple idea: to reach out with love and encouragement to someone going through a very tough time. The person was my cousin, who had just lost her husband. With Valentine’s Day approaching just a few short weeks later, and realizing what an incredibly difficult day that would be for her, I wanted to do something that would help her feel less alone. So I sent her a little gift in the mail. When she received it, she told me that it had made her feel like she “had just received a big, warm hug.” And that she didn’t feel so alone.

And that got me thinking about how many other people out there must dread Valentine’s Day. It is estimated that half of the population is lonely. Can you imagine how hard it is to have all the commercialization of Valentine’s Day thrown in your face, a painful reminder that you don’t have a special someone in your life? Perhaps you can imagine, all too well.

So on the next Valentine’s Day, I sent out a few more gift packages to people I care about; one recently divorced, another newly widowed, and a third, the sole care-giver to her elderly mother – and also to the elderly mother (my aunt). And when I heard from them, these people who I love and reached out to, they were so joyous and so thankful. And that is when I realized I was on to something.

I wrote the story of “The Cupid Project” and it was published in a local magazine here in the High Country, called All About Women.  From there, the idea was picked up by Guideposts Magazine . If you are not familiar with Guideposts, you should check it out. Guidepostsis a faith-based magazine that focuses on personal and spiritual growth. The stories are written by readers and they are incredibly uplifting. With a subscription base of more than 3 million readers, Guideposts is one of the top 25 magazines in the country. They also have a website that has more than 8 million readers. Guideposts liked the idea behind the Cupid Project enough to also feature the story on their website.

It is my hope that The Cupid Project is an idea that will grow. I hope that in reading this, you will be inspired to think of your own family, friends and neighbors, and select someone whom you know, or even suspect, will have a tough time of it on Valentine’s Day. If you think about it, there is almost certainly someone in your life who will feel lonely and forgotten on that day. So I encourage you to reach out, with a card or a small gift, and let them know that they matter to you, and that you’re thinking of them. And if nothing else, as I say in my article, bake a batch of cupcakes for the guys down at the Volunteer Fire Department. Think of the people you appreciate, but don’t take enough time to let them know. You may never realize how much of an impact your small act of kindness will have.

I invite you to read the original story of the Cupid Project here, on this website’s blog, and to look for a version of it in the February issue of Guideposts. But most of all, I invite you to post on this blog, and tell me about your own ideas for Cupid Projects - and even, if you’d like - about Valentine’s Days you’ve had that were difficult. Just enter your thoughts under the “comments” section of the blog. And check out our gift ideas; we’ll do all the work for you – just tell us who to send them to!

Thank you for visiting the website, and thank you for leaving your thoughts behind.

Sincerely,