My earliest memory of this annual event on the calendar is from the second grade. One of our school habits was to buy a pack of Valentine’s Day cards and ‘send one’ to everyone in the class (some of you from my generation reading this might smile at a similar memory). It was a pretty big deal.
However, it was first major communication goof-up: I signed every one of them, “Form Freddy.”
I never knew or thought to ask about the origin of the day. Here’s a short note on why we celebrate this day on February 14, from Christian History magazine:
According to tradition, Valentine, a priest in Rome during the reign of Claudius II, was beheaded on February 14 in the year 270. One explanation for Valentine’s subsequent relationship to the romantic holiday is this: Claudius was seeking more soldiers for his army, so he tried to remove family ties by forbidding marriage. Valentine ignored the order of the emperor and performed secret marriages. That act of defiance led to his arrest and execution.
Fair to say, I don’t remember associating this date with execution. It wasn’t part of the background to buying those packs of thirty cards, with about 4 or 5 different styles and messages.
Wherever you are, I hope you can enjoy the day.
“Form Freddy.”
Freddy Boswell 