Hearts and flowers

In the middle of the doldrums of February pops up a holiday full of fun and surprises — Valentine’s Day. The holiday has an interesting history. It has both Christian and Roman links. It turns out there were actually three Saint Valentines. One was a third-century priest who defied Emperor Claudius II. In retaliation, the emperor outlawed young men from marrying and starting families. He wanted all young men in his armies. Valentine continued to perform marriages in secret, and he was caught. He was put to death.

Another legend, an even more romantic one, revolves around the first man who may have sent a valentine. While in prison, a man named Valentine fell in love with his jailor’s daughter. As the story goes, he wrote her a love letter and signed it “from your Valentine.”

Most of us remember the excitement we felt as children when Valentine’s Day approached. In grade school, each student would make a special envelope and tape it to their desk, hoping to receive many valentines. The big day would arrive, and valentines were secretly delivered, and everyone’s envelope bulged. We could not wait to open our envelope and see who had sent us cards. Even a grade-school girl with braces on her teeth could dream of her Prince Charming and the secret valentine he might send.

Many years ago, Big Guy pulled off a Valentine’s stunt that is hard to beat. One Valentine’s Day, an enterprising young man set up on a busy corner, planning to sell dozens and dozens of roses. Sadly, he greatly overestimated his sales and ended up with a huge inventory. Enter Big Guy, who buys all the roses. He arrived home with a big grin on his face and began bringing in dozens of roses of every color and size into the house. I scrambled to find containers for the abundance of flowers. A Valentine’s Day to remember.

This year, I am going to a Galentine’s Day gathering. What is Galentine's Day? It is a holiday created by the TV character Leslie Knope, played by Amy Poehler, in the popular show Parks and Recreation. It is celebrated before Valentine’s Day and is typically an all-female event celebrating women’s friendship.The idea took off, and now the breakaway holiday is celebrated with merchandise and special events targeting women.

It is nice to know that there is one day a year that we stop and remember what a difference love makes in our lives. So make it special, be it a card, flowers, or candy!