Valentine's Day - At Home In Darien

Valentine’s Day, February 14th, is a day where we tell those we love how much they mean to us and we wish those we care about a Happy Valentine’s Day.

The history of Valentine’s Day is a bit of a mystery. Also called St. Valentine’s Day, the holiday has origins in the Roman festival of Lupercalia. The festival celebrated the coming of spring, and included fertility rites. At the end of the 5th century, Pope Gelasius I replaced Lupercalia with St. Valentine’s Day.

There is no reliable information about St. Valentine. By some accounts he was a Christian martyr and priest who, according to legend, signed a letter “from your Valentine” to his jailer’s daughter, whom he had befriended and healed from blindness. Other accounts hold that it was St. Valentine of Terni, a bishop, for whom the holiday was named. Another legend claims that St. Valentine defied the emperor’s orders and secretly married couples to spare the husbands from war. It is possible that these are different versions of the same original account and refer to only one person. Although we cannot be certain about who St. Valentine was, St. Valentine’s Day has been associated with love and celebrated as a day of romance since at least the 14th century.

Formal messages, or valentines, appeared in the 1500’s, and by the late 1700’s commercially printed cards were being made. Valentines commonly depict Cupid, the Roman god of love, along with hearts, the symbol of love.

Please enjoy this poem and best wishes for a Happy Valentine’s Day!

What does love mean on this Valentines day
Love is doing more for another than for self
Love is encouraging and supportive
Love is patient
Love is kindness for one another
Love is helping and laughter too
Love is appreciating all you do
Love is sharing interests
Love is a comfort
Love is always there
Love is meant to be shared
Love is beauty in the eyes of the beholder
Love is showing that you care.
Love is you and all you do
Happy Valentines Day to YOU!