It's Amore'!

For a woman, the language of love is simply alluring. The very ideal of being in love and showering a love one with 'gifts' of affection becomes in our minds the constant replay of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, minus the tragic outcome of this beautiful story steeped in Amore'

Because these images have started to play out in my mind, I wanted to go exploring, do a bit of research into the orgin of The Valentine and find out for myself, just what this special day was all about.

It was back in Ancient times of Rome, where Roman traditions merged with those of Christian faith. According to research, a Roman Emperor, Claudius 2 , came to believe that his single men would fare better in battle if they were no longer married, or, betrothed. He then, issued a decree banning marriages. This ban on marriages were reportedly opposed in secret by a certain young priest who was named ST. Valentine. Of course, as legend has it, Valentine was jailed and ordered put to death. The priest fell madly in love with the daughter of his jailer. He'd write his new sweetheart passionate love letters from behind those walls of separation , signing them "from your valentine."

In my quest to understand the legend of The Valentine, I came across other inspiring and heartfelt analogies of the valentine. There was the story of Romulus and Remus, founders of Rome who were said to soak the skin from sacrificial lambs and goats , in order to go about touching their women with the strips of animal skin. The women looked upon this ritual as a means to fertility. After the gentle lying on of blood soaked animal skin, the woman placed their names in a huge urn, allowing the men to come forth and retrieve a name, thus, becoming betrothed and eventually married to the woman's whose name was pulled from the urn.

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Imagine how lovers in this Millineum would feel, if they actually got to read words written in 1415? It is said to be the oldest known valentine...a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife after his capture at the battle of Agincourt. The manuscript can reportedly be found at the British Library in London England.

If you, like I, have been wondering about the orgin of Amore' and the history of 'The Valentine', I implore you to search it's history for yourself. You will come away knowing that once it's all been said and done, it is truly all about the love...

Happy Valentine's!