"Remember you are dust, and to dust you will return" - the traditional words of the Ash Wednesday liturgy that seem to be intended to remind us of our mortality and, possibly, insignificance... 'you are nothing'.  Words also that I have come to understand in a positive way, reminding us of our interconnection with the whole of creation, and that even when we are 'gone' the atoms and molecules that made up our earthly bodies will continue to 'live' as part of creation...

This year Ash Wwednesday coincides with Valentines Day and has prompted the cartoon shared above.

"Remember you are dust - but awfully loveable dust"

Many a true word is spoken in jest, and this is one such.  Yes, you are mortal, and globally insignificant, and yes one day every amtom of your body will be something else... BUT... you are loved with an everlasting love, the love that spoke you into being and, at the end of all things, will still embrace you.

I'm not a huge fan of Valentine's Day, but I am a fan of love in all its diverse expressions and meanings.

I'm often all too aware of my own mortality and insignificance, and it's good to be reminded of eternal love.

To be 'awfully loveable dust' is a profound theological statement... and one I offer to my lovely readers today.

Happy Valentine's-cum-Ash-Wednes Day!