Valentine's Day

So I was thinking about Valentine's Day, and before I go any further those of you who are planning on taking your significant other out to dinner, make a reservation soon, the good restaurants are filling up.

I will not be partaking in the Valentine's Day festivities this year, not because I don't want to spend an evening out with my wonderful husband, but because we have children, and our youngest, Matthew has a basketball game, and we wouldn't miss it, and Nick and Matt we have a Boy Scout Pack meeting that night as well.

How did this whole tradition start? 

And why is it such a big deal for some? 

I love getting flowers and roses are one of my favorites, next to daffodils, but I think in would rather get them just because....not just because it's Valentine's Day. (hint hint)

There are different opinions as to the origin of Valentine's Day. Some 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 (I will get to the 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.

The History of Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day started in the time of the Roman Empire. In ancient Rome, February 14th was a holiday to honour Juno. Juno was the Queen of the Roman Gods and Goddesses. The Romans also knew her as the Goddess of women and marriage. The following day, February 15th, began the Feast of Lupercalia.

Juno, or as the Greeks called her Hera

The lives of young boys and girls were strictly separate. However, one of the customs of the young people was name drawing (or love lotteries). On the eve of the festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls were written on slips of paper and placed into jars. Each young man would draw a girl's name from the jar and would then be partners for the duration of the festival with the girl whom he chose. Sometimes the pairing of the children lasted an entire year, and often, they would fall in love and would later marry.

Emperor Claudius II

Under the rule of Emperor Claudius II Rome was involved in many bloody and unpopular campaigns. Claudius the Cruel was having a difficult time getting soldiers to join his military leagues. He believed that the reason was that roman men did not want to leave their loves or families. As a result, Claudius cancelled all marriages and engagements in Rome. The good Saint Valentine was a priest at Rome in the days of Claudius II. He and Saint Marius aided the Christian martyrs and secretly married couples, and for this kind deed Saint Valentine was apprehended and dragged before the Prefect of Rome, who condemned him to be beaten to death with clubs and to have his head cut off. He suffered martyrdom on the 14th day of February, about the year 270. At that time it was the custom in Rome, a very ancient custom, indeed, to celebrate in the month of February the Lupercalia, feasts in honor of a heathen god. On these occasions, amidst a variety of pagan ceremonies, the names of young women were placed in a box, from which they were drawn by the men as chance directed.

The pastors of the early Christian Church in Rome endeavoured to do away with the pagan element in these feasts by substituting the names of saints for those of maidens. And as the Lupercalia began about the middle of February, the pastors appear to have chosen Saint Valentine's Day for the celebration of this new feast. So it seems that the custom of young men choosing maidens for valentines, or saints as patrons for the coming year, arose in this way.

On a side note Esther Howland was the woman credited for the Valentines Day greeting card and she is from Worcester Mass, but as you can see in her picture below, she doesn't look too happy, maybe she never got her Valentine?

Now that I have bored you to death, I am going to bore you some more. Michael and I celebrated our first Valentine's Day together 21 years ago and he was definitely out to impress, he showed up at my doorstep with a dozen roses, a half dozen balloons, a stuffed teddy bear, and a 3lb box of chocolate.....and took me out to dinner. I think he covered everything, especially the 10 lbs I gained eating the chocolate, not to mention the diabetic coma. While we were dating he made every Valentine's day special, but now that we are married and have 3 boys, I really don't mind being at my sons basketball game, or Scouting event. I never ask for gifts or flowers, but the only thing I ask for is a card, and there is a catch.....he has to write something in it, and sometimes I think that's harder than buying me a gift.

Like I said before I would rather get flowers just because than get them because you feel you have to on Valentine's Day.

I know this...In My Life time spent with the 4 men in my life makes it Valentine's Day every day!!