VALENTINE’S DAY

Valentine’s Day is coming up on February 14. It is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other; sending Valentine’s cards, candy, or donations to charities, for their love ones, often anonymously. Mostly, it is in the form of flowers and candy as presents that are given on Valentine’s Day. The holiday is named after two men, both Christian martyrs named Valentine. The day became associated with romantic love in the High Middle Ages in Europe, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.

The day is most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of “valentines”. Modern Valentine symbols include the heart-shaped outline and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have largely given way to mass-produced greeting cards. The Greeting Card Association estimates that approximately one billion valentines are sent each year worldwide, making the day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year behind Christmas, and it is the second day after Halloween when chocolate is consumed in mass quantities. The association also estimates that women purchase approximately 85 percent of all valentines.

Hmmm.

Many of us sistas will be celebrating Valentine’s Day alone.

So, instead of sitting home alone, let’s all make plans to celebrate the “other loved ones” in our lives.

Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers and the various extended relatives in all of our families.

Give them the gift of love on Valentine’s Day, and not only will we make someone else happy. We will also lighten and cheer ourselves up as well. Let’s remember that “love” comes in many different types of people. And even though we may have no “significant other” in our lives right now, we still have “significant others” who were there for us throughout all our lives,  before we knew what a boyfriend or husband ever was.

Let’s not forget them this Valentine’s Day.

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!