Happy V-Day!

Even though I feel that this is a day created by Hallmark to sell cards and candy, I hope everyone has a great Valentines Day! I am lucky, Meg feels about the same way as I do about the day, but since we have kids, we are getting more into the spirit of giving valentines. I wanted to learn more about the origin of the Hallmark Holiday and here is some of the interesting things I found.

There are varying opinions as to the origin of Valentine's Day. Some experts state that it originated from St. Valentine, a Roman who was martyred for refusing to give up Christianity. He died on February 14, 269 A.D., the same day that had been devoted to love lotteries. Legend also says that St. Valentine left a farewell note for the jailer's daughter, who had become his friend, and signed it "From Your Valentine". Other aspects of the story say that Saint Valentine served as a priest at the temple during the reign of Emperor Claudius. Claudius then had Valentine jailed for defying him. In 496 A.D. Pope Gelasius set aside February 14 to honor St. Valentine.

Gradually, February 14 became the date for exchanging love messages and St. Valentine became the patron saint of lovers. Sending poems and simple gifts such as flowers or candy marked the date. In the United States, Miss Esther Howland is given credit for sending the first valentine cards. Commercial valentines were introduced in the 1800's and now the date is very commercialized and millions of cards, candy and flowers are given on this day. The town of Loveland, Colorado, does a large post office business around February 14. People travel from miles around to get cards and gifts shipped from Loveland.

Whether you love it or hate it, Valentines Day has become mainstream in America. It is a day to express your love and to buy stuffed animals and candy. But what I have noticed about this day is that in most cases, it is only the man who actually gives a gift. You don’t see a lot of guys getting flowers at the office or getting big chocolate hearts. What is up with that?