Hello, everyone.

The month of February is coming in cold. Brr-r-r-! I usually don't mind the cold, too much. But the bitter-cold weather is not my favorite anymore. I have even stopped walking outside and joined a gym to get my exercise and keep healthy.

February. The month of Valentines Day. The month of love. This is the month we think about hearts, chocolate, and maybe a gift here and there. Mothers think about helping their school-age children get valentines ready for school. When I was young, we all made valentine boxes with red construction paper, paper doilies, and hearts that you cut out by folding a piece of paper in half and then cutting just half of the heart. (I still do that today.) The girls loved valentines day and read meaning into the cards that were never intended. The boys pretended to hate it or maybe they really did hate it. It was always a time of drama. Did I have to give one to that boy or girl I didn't really like? What about the teacher? The answer was always the same. Yes, you need to give a valentine to everyone in the class.

So why do I bring this up? I think it has some meaning in my life today. I have sisters in my ward that I am very close to and others not so much. I make a sincere effort to get to know all the sisters in the ward and try to learn about them and to become closer to them. With some sisters it is easy and with others it is more difficult, for whatever reason. Maybe some of you have the same thing happen to you. Maybe you have a sister on your visiting teaching route that you can't seem to get close to. Maybe you have trouble reaching out to her or maybe she won't let you into her life. It could be that you are working with someone in your calling that just doesn't seem to "jive" with you.

President Uchrdorf, in the October 2009 General Conference, talked about love. He talked about God's love for each of us and about our love of God and others:

"Heavenly Father’s love for His children is the core message of the plan of happiness....Love is the guiding light that illuminates the disciple’s path and fills our daily walk with life, meaning, and wonder. Love is the measure of our faith, the inspiration for our obedience, and the true altitude of our discipleship. Love is the way of the disciple....Let us be known as a people who love God with all our heart, soul, and mind and who love our neighbor as ourselves. When we understand and practice these two great commandments in our families, in our wards and branches, in our nations, and in our daily lives, we will begin to understand what it means to be a true disciple of Jesus the Christ."

With this in mind, I am asking each of you to give each sister you can a "valentine". Not the red construction paper kind or ones covered with paper doilies, but a valentine of your love. Be kind to each sister you meet at church. Seek out those who are a little harder to love. Remember that the Savior loves every sister. He never gives up on her or puts her aside. He always extends a loving hand. The Savior would never pass up the opportunity to share His love. And neither can we.

I love you all and hope you enjoy spreading the love.

Pat Romney