Valentine’s goody bags, cupcakes, and childcare discussions equal another successful cluster meeting (this time at Starbucks)! Always a pleasure meeting up with my girls, and we had a great time (except for having to say good-bye to Carol who will be leaving for Brazil in just a few days). We will miss you dearly and wish you good luck in whatever life brings your way!!

Want to discover the meaning behind Valentine’s Day? After all, flowers, candy, red hearts, and romance can’t be what it’s all about, right? See below for more info!!

The history behind this day is anything but romantic. This is what some believe is the real story behind Valentine’s Day:

Valentine was a Roman Priest, and his emperor, Claudias, had prohibited marriage between young people (thinking that unmarried soldiers fought better than married ones because married soldiers might be afraid of what might happen to them or their wives/families if they died). However, Valentine believed in marrying couples within the Christian church and would secretly marry young people despite Claudias’s will.

Unfortunately, Valentine was eventually caught and later imprisoned for performing these marriage ceremonies against the Emperor’s commandment. According to Father Frank O’Gara of Whitefriars Street Church in Dublin, Ireland, Valentine was to be judged by the Roman law. One of the men in the court room, named Asterius, had a daughter who was blind and Valentine was supposed to have prayed with and healed the young girl with such astonishing effect that Asterius himself became Christian as a result.

In the year 269 AD, Valentine was sentenced to death. Some say that the last words he wrote were in a note to Asterius’ daughter, signed, “from your Valentine.”

The custom of choosing a sweetheart on this date spread through Europe in the Middle Ages, and then to the early American colonies. In fact, in AD 496, Saint Pope Gelasius I declared February 14 as “Valentine’s Day.” Although it is not an official holiday, most Americans observe this day. It is simply the day that you show your friend or loved one that you care 🙂