Valentine’s Day, what a pain in the neck. Why are we pressured to
buy gifts, write poems, and declare our love for another? Isn’t a card with
heartfelt sentiments good enough? Even
when our significant other gives us the ancient cliché, “You don’t have to buy
me anything,” we know that’s a hidden code for “You better not forget me.” I
guess to them it’s even more romantic if we buy a gift anyway even when we have
been freed from all obligations.
Though it is hard to pinpoint exactly where the holiday originated,
there are a few legends of the holiday's beginnings. These legends are not
completely verifiable, but they are common enough to at least have some degree
of believability, so, here it goes. The romantic side of Valentine’s Day is said
to come from Lupercalia, a Pagan
festival of fertility, that was celebrated in the middle of our month of
February. This festival began with an animal sacrifice—nothing says love like a
dead animal. After the sacrifice, the celebration continued with the ritualistic
slapping of the young women with strips of the animal’s flesh and blood—ah, how
romantic. Around the fifth century, the church renamed this holiday as Saint
Valentine’s Day (thank heavens!).
Who was Saint Valentine? Who knows? The church canonized several
Valentines, but the most accepted belief is of a Roman priest during the reign
of Claudius the second. Claudius kept his soldiers in the field for extremely
long periods of time, and the soldiers became homesick. So much so, that they
became ill suited for battle. Therefore, Claudius banned the soldier and
everyone else from the right of marriage. Valentine found this unjust and
married the people secretly. When he was found out, he was arrested, jailed, and
sentenced to death. While in prison, Valentine fell in love with his jailor’s
daughter. On the day he was executed, he slipped his
love a note that was signed, “From your valentine.”
Now, to the history of
cards: Again, it is hard to pinpoint the
exact origins of the cards. In Rome, cards baring the names of young people were
once collected and placed in an urn. On Valentine’s Day, you would draw a card
to see who your valentine was. You would show your affection to them and would
then give them gifts later in the year. It can’t be proven, but a card signed
Amanda Huginkiss was mysteriously discovered at every drawing--haha. The cards
later became a declaration of love to your significant other. The cards could be
quite elaborate and pictures of cherubs or Cupid, the Roman god of Love, were
staples of the sentiments. The cards grew in craftsmanship and popularity when
they became part of the Civil War soldier’s stationary ration. You can search vintage valentine’s cards on the
internet to see the many good examples.
For our Valentine’s Day, we can buy a card (if you’re not
imaginative enough to write a good letter), buy some chocolates (make sure it’s
her favorite chocolates, not yours), or pay triple the normal price for some
roses (it means more to her if you buy flowers randomly throughout the year).
It’s up to you, but like she said, “You don’t have to buy me anything,”
especially if you want to spend Valentine’s night on the couch.
