Roses are red,

Violets are blue,

Find your passion and love what you do!

The month of February typically celebrates romantic love and commercialized Valentine’s Day gifts. Instead of focusing on the cliché candy hearts and candlelight dinners, let’s talk about what really makes the heart happy.

Yes, chocolate makes my tummy happy, and beautiful flowers make me smile. However, finding your passion is an everlasting love that makes the heart and soul happy. Let’s reframe the holiday to indulge in an existing passion, rekindle an old hobby or take the time to explore what truly makes you feel alive or brings you joy.

For me, art has always been my passion. Even as a kid, I was never interested in toys or dolls. I always spent my free time drawing and creating.

When entering the full time work force, I took marketing and sales jobs to earn a real paycheck. However, I was still able to apply my passion into areas such as ad designs or marketing materials. I even exhibited in a couple art shows for fun.

When I had kids, I chose to stay home and raise them full time. I kept fueling my passion by painting murals in my kid’s rooms, doing crafts and later starting a small side business called Edible Art. Now, I have the pleasure as a journalist to write about artists, creative districts like the ViBe, art shows and museums. I have always found a way to keep art in my life as a hobby or woven into my career.

Recently, I found a local artist that’s been following her passion since childhood. In elementary school, artist Abby Pawley applied for the Old Donation Visual Art School in Virginia Beach. She was not accepted. However, she kept nurturing her art throughschool programs and was reminded by her high school art teacher why she fell in love with art in the first place.

“Pursuing art never felt optional to me, it felt inevitable,” Pawley said. “When you’re surrounded by people who believe in your potential, it gives you both the freedom and responsibility to follow your passion.”

Pawley is now a full-time artist that has painted prominent murals in locations including the ViBe, Doumar’s, Wasserhund Brewing Co, Ocean Storage and many others. Currently, she’s working on her biggest art project of all time. She’s painting two muralsfor Amazon at their ORF4 plant.

“The hours I spend painting never feel like an obligation, but like alignment,” Pawley said. ”The time spent doing exactly what I am meant to be doing, fueled by passion, only deepens the more I create.”

So, let February be a reminder to do what you love. If you’re lucky enough to make a living from your passion, you’re truly blessed. If not, enjoy your passion as a hobby and make the time to include it in your daily life. It can be as simple as loving to volunteer, working in the garden, crafting or any activity that brings you joy.

This February, love yourself by finding something that you love to do.

https://www.dailypress.com/2026/02/08/the-art-of-loving-what-you-do/