V-Day

Valentine’s Day, like many of our modern holiday’s, was to celebrate Christian martyr’s named St. Valentine. The day first became associated with love in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished. It was established by the Pope  in 496 AD, and then deleted from the Roman Calendar in 1969. Around 1800, a British publisher issued The Young Man’s Valentine Writer, that contained suggested sentimental verses for lovers unable to compose their own. Paper Valentines were popular in England in the early 19th century and were printed in mass production and in factories. Thus began the only Valentine’s Day we know today. Hallmark and flower shops have banked on what first started out as a celebration in the Christian society and what has become their biggest sales day of the year.

I hope that no matter where you are in life that you will enjoy today for what it should be about, not what society has dreamed up. Enjoy your day because it’s beautiful. Be happy that spring is near. Smile at the thought of loving those closest to you. But, most of all, be happy with where you are in life. It’s a good one.