​Valentine’s is bullshit

People, too, who only say
They love you
The swinging dick
The phony maiden

All requite in passion
And hormonal justifications
And for what
A myth, a tale, a skull

No

Love is not candy
Love is not lace
Nor leather
Nor a face

It is action
It is calm
It is acceptance
And belief

A nudge
Turned persistence
A choice
Turned commitment

Take the hearts
The poems
The posies
Toss them in a sea

But never ever
Expect me
To bow or bend
If you slight my love

Or just love, generally