Valentine's Day

There are a few different theories of how Valentine's Day came about. Here's my favorite:

Valentine's Day started in the time of the Roman Empire, when February 14th was a holiday to honor Juno, the Queen of the Roman Gods and Goddesses (aka the Goddess of women and marriage). On February 15th the Feast of Lupercalia began. During these times the lives of young boys were very seperate from the lives of young girls. However, one of the customs of the young people was name drawing. On the eve of the festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls were written on slips of paper and placed into jars. Each young man would draw a girl's name from the jar and would then be partners for the duration of the festival with the girl whom he chose. Sometimes the pairing of the children lasted an entire year, and often, they would fall in love and would later marry. Emperor Claudius II of Rome did not like this because men were choosing to fall in love and have families instead of serving their country. So he canceled all engagements and marriages. Saint Valentine was a priest during these times and believed in Christian marriage, so he secretly married couples. Emperor Claudius found out and had Saint Valentine killed, ironically on February 14th, which is why we celebrate Valentine's Day.

Just think ladies....you could be forever coupled with a man who drew your name from a jar. Kind of exciting, kind of scary.....

Anyway, Happy Valentine's Day!