Once upon a time in wintry Winnipeg, there lived a woman named Toby Vinsky, who loved to tell her little girls bedtime stories. The kids starred in these tales, which always began the same way.

Last week my grandson was excitedly describing a new children’s video game that had just come out. “Grandma, it’s EPIC!”, he said.
“Epic?” I queried. What does that mean?

“You can’t go home again”…

This phrase was the title of author Thomas Wolfe’s last novel, published posthumously in 1940. In it, the narrator laments the unfair passing of time. He says, “You can’t go back home to your family, back home to your childhood …back home to the escapes of time and memory.” These wistful words of wisdom have become part of our lexicon and suggest that attempts to relive youthful memories will always fail. 

Who knew there was such a “holiday”? Like me, you probably assumed that every day was kissing day. After all, on any given day we kiss our spouses, kids, grandkids, hot dates, and good friends, and it’s not unheard of to give our dogs, cats or hamsters an occasional smooch.

When I found out that I had missed this momentous occasion, I wanted to learn more. Legend has it that a dental insurance company in England dreamed up the concept as part of an ad campaign to promote their coverage for better dental health (and kissing sweet breath!).