Valentine’s day. You might think it a cynical commercial exercise benefiting only the greetings cards manufacturers or something only teenagers really get excited about.
Either way, it has to be pointed out that there are some grounds for defence of the lovers’ day. For many men who are not romantically-minded it is perhaps the only day where it’s hard to get it wrong. The choices are clearly laid out: flowers – check, card – check, and if you can, stretch to it dinner.
We don’t get asked for much in fairness. Don’t forget your love’s birthday, make an effort at Christmas and whatever you do, do something nice on Valentine’s Day.
Whether the significant other thinks it’s childish or silly, it’s still best to make some kind of fuss, the consequences of not doing anything can be far-reaching and create untold problems down the line.
We’ve been drilled from an early age to understand that a small effort on the day can reap huge rewards later, a small gesture or surprise gift can be traded on for months afterwards. At this stage, there is really no excuse for forgetting.
Approximately 150 million Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged annually in the U.S. alone, making Valentine’s Day the second most popular card-sending holiday after Christmas.
How we came to celebrate Saint Valentine’s Day as one for lovers is not really clear. One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome.
When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.
The legend contends that while imprisoned Valentine actually sent the first ‘Valentine’ greeting himself after he fell in love with a young girl – possibly his jailor’s daughter, who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter signed ‘From your Valentine’
By Steve Kingston
