Why Celebrate Valentines Day

Dear friends,

Guess what day is today?! Yup, thats right, everyone was preparing for this since New Years Eve! Its the one and only Valentines Day! St Valentines Day has roots in several different legends that have found their way to us through the ages. One of the earliest popular symbols of the Valentines day is Cupid, the Roman god of love, who is represented by the image of a young boy with bow and arrow. Several theories surround the history of Valentines Day.

Three hundred years after the death of Jesus Christ, the Roman emperors still demanded that everyone believe in the Roman gods. Valentine, a Christian priest, had been thrown in prison for his teachings. On February 14, Valentine was beheaded, not only because he was a Christian, but also because he had performed a miracle. He supposedly cured the jailers daughter of her blindness. The night before he was executed, he wrote the jailers daughter a farewell letter, signing it "From Your Valentine." Another legend tells us that this same Valentine, well-loved by all, received notes to his jail cell from children and friends who missed him.

The custom of choosing a sweetheart on this date spread through Europe in the Middle Ages, and then to the early American colonies. Throughout the ages, people also believed that birds picked their mates on February 14!
In AD 496 Sain Pope Gelasius I declared February 14 as "Valentines Day". Although its not an official holiday, most Americans observe this day.
Whatever the odd mixture of origins, St Valentines Day is now a day for sweethearts. It is the day that you show your friend or loved one that you care. You can send candy to someone you think is special. Or you can send roses, the flower of love. Most people send "valentine" a greeting card named after the notes that St Valentine received in jail.

Probably the first greeting cards, handmade valentines, appeared in the 16th century. As early as 1800, companies began mass-producing cards. Initially these cards were hand-colored by factory workers. By the early 20th century even fancy lace and ribbon-strewn cards were created by machine.

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 To-morrow is Saint Valentines day, 

All in the morning betime,
And I a maid at your window,
To be your Valentine.
Then up he rose, and donnd his clothes,
And duppd the chamber-door;
Let in the maid, that out a maid
Never departed more. 

William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act IV, Scene 5

In Romania, the traditional holiday for lovers is Dragobete, which is celebrated on February 24. It is named after a character from Romanian folklore who was supposed to be the son of Baba Dochia. Part of his name is the word drag ("dear"), which can also be found in the word dragoste ("love"). In recent years, Romania has also started celebrating Valentines Day, despite already having Dragobete as a traditional holiday. This has drawn backlash from several groups, institutions and nationalist organizations like Noua Dreaptǎ, who condemn Valentines Day for being superficial, commercialist and imported Western kitsch.

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Now I really I believe that we should not just designate a particular date, once in a year, in which we would celebrate the ones we love. We should say to them as often as we can that we love them. We should show them our love for them and even though for many it may seem redundant to say "I Love You!" each day to the one you love, I can tell you that is also very reassuring. You never know when you will die and you cannot control that. We cannot know what the future holds or what we will do in the next second of our life so why let that be a ordinary word and not something from your heart? 

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I do not believe in "Valentines Day" but I do believe in LOVE. I believe in true love and I believe in all the forms that love can take place - be that the love for your better half/to your husband or fiance or boyfriend, the love to your family, the love for your friends and the love for human kind, for the people around you. I believe that love is something that God planted within us and I believe that it is the best gift that God had for us. I believe in loving with all your heart and soul and I believe in the fact that love is something you should be never afraid or ashamed of. 

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Think of the ones you love and try to make them happy each day, not just a day in time, chosen randomly. Make the moments together last and let love guide you. Flowers or not, candies or not, presents or not if you 2 are in love nothing else will matter ;)

Yours truly, 

A LadyBug that believes in LOVE!