# 67 - Valentine's Day ❤️ 🍫 🌹

Send us Fan Mail Have you noticed all the red hearts in the stores?Absolutely!Soon it will be February 14th -  St. Valentine’s Day!  Why do we celebrate Valentine’s Day?That’s a long story! It started as a Christian feast day honoring a martyr named Valentine hundreds of years ago – in the 3rd century. What is a martyr?A martyr is a person who is persecuted or killed because of their beliefs.And Valentine was a martyr. He lived in the 3rd century. He was a priest in the Roman Empire who was killed because he ministered to persecuted Christians.He was buried on February 14 and after his death, the church made him a saint.Since at least the 8th century February 14th has been a religious feast day celebrating St. Valentine.Interesting! How did the feast day of this Christian martyr, St Valentine, become the holiday we celebrate today with cards, flowers and chocolates?Good question! Somehow hundreds of years later in 14th to 18th century England St. Valentine’s Day became a day when couples express their love for each other.How did that happen?Some people think it was because of an English poet named Chaucer.Chaucer?Yup. He was an English poet. In 1832 he wrote a poem about lovebird’s  choosing their mates. “lovebirds” huh?Are we talking about actual birds?We are talking about actual birds! This is a strange story.I agree. And other poets around that time wrote poems about love that associated St. Valentine’s Day with love.So -  over the centuries February 14, that started as a day to remember a Christian martyr, has become a day when people send cards, flowers, and chocolates to people to express their love and affection.You got it!  I’ll say it again! That’s a strange story! Maybe people were just looking for an excuse to express their feelings.You might be right.  In the early 1800’s people wrote notes and letters to express their love and affection. Those were the days of simple expressions of love and affection.Those days of simple expression of love on Valentine’s Day became a business in the 1800’s when the first commercial Valentine’s Day cards were manufactured. In 1913 the greeting card company Hallmark began selling Valentine’s Day Cards.That was the beginning of the commercialization of St. Valentine’s Day. Now it’s a very commercial holiday! Dear listener, can you guess how much the average American spent of Valentine’s Day  in 2025?Each American?About $ 188 according to a AI. Can you guess what the top 5 Valentines gifts were? 1.      Candy2.      Flowers3.      Greeting cards4.      An evening out5.      JewelryWell, Valentine’s Day is a far cry from its beginning as a martyred saint’s feast day – “a far cry from" means that one thing is very different from something else. The way we celebrate Valentine’s Day is very different from its origins as a day celebrating a Christian martyr.  How do people celebrate Valentine’s Day in your home country, dear listener? Please send us a message at [email protected] and let us know.            Speaking of Valentine’s Day. Look for our “Idioms from the Heart” episode. Tacomaliteracy.org