I
don’t believe that I have ever written about St Valentine before. Probably
because I don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day, viewing it as another day for the
greeting card manufacturers and flower growers to make an extra buck.
So
where did Valentine’s Day come from? Was there a real person named Valentine
and why did he become the patron saint of engaged couples, marriage and lovers?
No
one seems to know for sure. Supposedly there was a real man named St Valentine
and he is believed to have lived in the third century. There also were possibly
three men known as St Valentine around this time, so who knows what to believe.
Whether
true or not, the story about Valentine that I like the best and which seems to
make the most sense when making him the patron saint of love is this one. The emperor
was busy sending men off to war, which seemed to be quite popular even previous
to that according to the many stories of war in the Bible. This required many
able-bodied men, and it was thought that married men made bad soldiers because
they didn’t want to leave their wives behind and they certainly didn’t want to
die for the cause and never return to their beloved. So the king ruled that
young men couldn’t get married. Along comes the priest Valentine who defied
this order and began marrying young couples in secret. When he was found out,
he was imprisoned and eventually executed.
There
are a lot more stories, none of which have been proven. One such legend is that
on the day he was to be executed (which was February 14, of course), Valentine
sent a note to a girl who he had cured of blindness. The note was signed, “Your
Valentine”, which is where the tradition of signing cards that way this time of
year comes from.
I
am somewhat of a curmudgeon when it comes to romance. Cards and roses are a
waste of money. Going out to eat at a fancy restaurant is a waste of money and
a waste of time. And who wants to get dressed up for dinner anyway when they
can eat a bowl of cereal in their jammies on the couch? And if hubby is in his
chair next to me and we are watching “The Princess Bride” for the hundredth
time, that’s all the romance I need.
 |
| Is there anything more sexy than a man in his chair with his cats? |
1 comment:
Dave is currently sitting in the chair with Claire. She loves him!!!! Totally agree on the flowers and expensive dinner in a restaurant although I have been known to have friends over for dinner here with games of course.
Post a Comment