The Lovers’ Holiday

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, the holiday for lovers.  I realized that I didn’t know the true origins of this holiday so thought I should do my homework .  A quick Wikipedia check provided me with the following information:

Saint Valentine’s Day was originally established in 496 AD by Pope Galasius, honoring early Christian martyrs by this name.  In 1969, Pope Paul VI removed it from the General Roman Calendar of saints, perhaps because our present-day celebration of this holiday no longer resembles its original intent?

In the Middle Ages Chaucer was the first to associate February 14th with romantic love.  As early as the 15th century, Valentine’s Day became an occasion when lovers expressed their affections for each other with flowers, sweet treats, and greeting cards.  Not much has changed over the years, except maybe the amount of money shelled out on this holiday.

As has become the case with other holidays, sometimes commercialism gives us an easy out, by expressing for us through a greeting card or a gift what we don’t take the time to say ourselves often enough, just a simple ‘I love you’.

I have had the good fortunate to be married to a wonderful man for the past 21 years, a devoted husband who, for whatever reason(s), has put up with my crazy, neurotic ways.  In spite of them all, he respects my individuality, as I do his.  On this most romantic of holidays, it seems a fitting time (perhaps not the most conventional way), to honor the man he is and let him know how blessed I am to be his wife.  I love you honey!

Although this is the day devoted to lovers, shouldn’t every day be about honoring those we love?

Happy Valentine’s Day!  ♥

If you liked this blog post, why not subscribe to my blog via feed reader or e-mail?