Celebrating Brown Love

In honour of lovers day, we’re celebrating Brown Love! We asked you about your love, here’s what you had to say.

Single Mother: Sofia

What does love look like in your home?

I highly value love that is shown by actions. Love in our home is: Love is a book of beautiful poetry, Love is my girl making me a cuppa tea. Love is my son watering my pot plants especially my frangipani. Love is my girl bringing me a beautiful flower she'd picked on her walk home. Love is my son bringing home some fabric, a rock, a stone or bits of Italian marble he'd rescued from a skip because he knows I will be overjoyed and will use it in a future art project. Love is knowing that my children understand they are most beloved but that i expect accountability from them. Love is allowing each of us in our fale to live our lives with freedom, satisfaction and authenticity.

Married for 21 years, with 5 kids: The Lauitiiti’s

What is the secret to keeping the love alive even with your busy busy lives being parents of 5 kids and taking care of ur elderly parents. How do you stay connected?

We've been together for almost 25yrs and almost 21yrs married. We can testify wholeheartedly that the more we love, seek & acknowledge our need for God in our lives - the more love & grace we have towards each other. God has given us a love that keeps us together so that we always choose each other. In the moments where we lose our way, it's God's love that helps us find a way back to each other. God's love sets a standard for our love that just cannot be matched.

Highschool Sweethearts - The Utupo’s

The Utupos with their children - L-R Na'i, Eta (mum), Jordan (dad), Tana

What was it like to grow up with your love?

We were kids when we fell in love at 15 yrs old, love always wins through every learning experience of growing up with your love, we’ve weathered every season but we’ve learnt so much on our journey to know love truly wins! We’re built on faith and family so a lot of that played a big part in our relationship. We’re much older now at 35yrs old, wiser, stronger, resilient, and stronger than ever. A friendship and love that’ll last forever.

Single Father: TheWesternGuide

You’ve spoken openly about your divorce, could you tell me one thing that journey has taught you about love?

The main thing I’ve learnt from my divorce journey, is that if you can not understand what you need as a person both with love and everyday needs, you will struggle to fulfill someone else's needs as you’re still tryna figure yourself out. So before anything, definitely take the time out to understand who you are, who you wanna be and where you wanna be before you allow someone else to be a part of you.

I’d like my daughter to understand that with love there needs to be balance. Too much or too little can be a distraction, whereas the right amount can encourage growth for the better.

New Love: Lizie & Chloe

How did you know you were falling in love?

When I found myself sitting on the sofa, drinking tea with her (without phone distraction or the TV acting as background noise) and laughing all night and getting to know her, I knew ahhh this simple activity is going to be dangerous for my heart.

Newlyweds: The Hunts

You’ve recently been married! What’s your secret to staying connected during a busy/stressful time of wedding planning?

What if we didn’t stay connected? Haha jokes! It definitely was a stressful time for us both and it wasn’t always sunshine and rainbows, however as the planning went on, we realised we were always too busy and the only quality time we had was when we were wedding planning. Which was just in the room or on the dining table. However, we started to change our wedding planning meeting place from our home to a nice date out. We sometimes went to the beach, park, but being the food lovers that we are, we mostly went to where we could dine in and get a bite to eat. So I would say, find what you and your partner have in common or what makes you happy and somehow incorporate it into your wedding planning!

1st year of Marriage, 9 years of love: The Gerard's

How has your perspective on love changed over the 9 years of being together?

Drastically! I've realized that It's never gonna be the sweet, heart-pounding, exciting type of love that we both once felt when we started courting, like a sweet candy you pop in your mouth, the flavour will wear off once you keep picking at it and you'll eventually reach the centre and it's finished, but it doesn't mean you stop loving the candy, you just fall in love with the satisfaction of knowing that you enjoyed it and will continue to get it because of it's familiarity. My husband and I have gotten to the point where we know each others ins and outs, pros and cons, yins and yangs, but true love is knowing how bad something can taste but loving it nevertheless, because how Taro is to Lu Sipi, we balance each other out.

So weather you're spending time with your partner or your children this Valentines - remember that love comes in all different shapes and sizes, and self love is the most important alofa of all & that Valentines is a good day to love yourself too!