SERVING LOVE IN REAL TIME
By Gloria Fonseca
Love month usually spotlights romance, roses, and candlelit dinners. But there’s another kind of love that keeps the lights on when things go dark. The quiet, unglamorous, show-up-no-matter-what kind.
This February, let’s make appreciation a tradition.
HAVE YOU THANKED YOUR FIRST RESPONDER TODAY?
We kiss our partners goodbye, hug our kids before school, and text hearts to friends. Meanwhile, somewhere nearby, a first responder is lacing boots, checking gear, and bracing for a shift that may include chaos, grief, danger, or all three before breakfast.
- Firefighters.
- EMTs.
- Paramedics.
- Police officers.
- Dispatchers.
- ER teams.
They run toward moments the rest of us instinctively run away from.
They don’t know whose life they’ll hold in their hands today. They just know they will.
Expanding the Circle of Love
The month of love feels like the perfect time to widen the circle. Not just romantic love, but community love. Gratitude with teeth. Appreciation that moves beyond a social media post and into real life.
What if thanking first responders became as normal as Valentine’s flowers?
- A handwritten note dropped off at a station.
- A coffee paid forward.
- A meal sent during a long shift.
- A simple “I see you” when you cross paths.
Small gestures land big when someone spends their days carrying the weight of other people’s worst moments.
If You Love a First Responder
And if you love someone who is a first responder, this matters even more.
Their job doesn’t end when the shift does. The stress follows them home. The silence too. Loving them means recognizing that strength doesn’t cancel exhaustion.
GRATITUDE IS A MUSCLE
We assume first responders know they’re appreciated. But appreciation, like love, has to be spoken to stay alive.
- Thank them when nothing dramatic happened.
- Thank them when you didn’t need them personally.
- Thank them simply because they exist, trained and ready, just in case.
Gratitude is a muscle. The more a community uses it, the stronger everyone gets.
LET’S MAKE IT A THING
Not a trend. Not a hashtag that fades. A habit.
February can be the reminder. But the goal is year-round acknowledgment of people who choose service over comfort, duty over convenience, and courage over fear.
So this month, alongside chocolates and cards, add one more act of love:
- Thank a first responder.
- Appreciate a provider.
- Teach your kids to say “thank you” to the people who protect them.
Love doesn’t only live in romance. Sometimes it wears a uniform, answers a call at 2 a.m., and shows up on the worst day of someone’s life.
That kind of love deserves recognition.
