happy happy Valentine's Day!
i asked Husband this morning "who the heck was Saint Valentine anyway?" and he didn't really know and neither did i, so here's what i found:
Saint Valentine, according to romantic legend, was a kind-hearted Roman priest who married young couples against the wishes of Emperor Claudius II, and was beheaded for his deeds on the 14th of February. In truth, the exact origins and identity of St. Valentine are unclear. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, "At least three different Saint Valentines, all of them martyrs, are mentioned in the early martyrologies under the date of 14 February." Two of these men lived in the third century A.D., one being the bishop of Interamna (now Terni, Italy) and the other a priest of Rome. (Some speculate that these two figures were actually the same man.) Both seem to have been persecuted for their beliefs; the Roman priest reportedly was beaten and then beheaded on the orders of Emperor Claudius II, on or about the year 270. Legends vary on how the martyr's name became connected with romance: the date of his death may have become mingled with the feast of Lupercalia, a pagan festival of love, or with the ancient belief that birds first mate in the middle of February. In modern times Valentine's Day is a day of special romantic sentiment and gift-giving among lovers.
do saints remind you of action figures? they remind me of action figures. crazy powers and resistances to poisons and freakishly elaborate martyrdoms. if i had been Catholic growing up i would have always gotten in trouble for thinking that. i got in trouble for watching Madonna's Like a Prayer video when i was little. kinda not the same thing as wondering who would be a good saint to hang out with Spiderman and Wonder Woman. but wouldn't a fire-proof saint have been useful?
today stands to be the happiest V-day in memory. i'm so thankful that Husband is home, safe and sound and that just pales everything else: i am so happy. for V-day, Husband got us new curtains for our bedroom and put them up yesterday. he also bought me an awesome vanity where i can sit and do makeup and be girly and sing "I Adore Being A Girl;" we call that area of the bedroom Princess Land. i got Husband a new Skagen watch (as his titanium one has gone broken and his other one has gone missing) and i think it was a big hit.
and, in a small way, it does support the Dutch.
Saint Valentine, according to romantic legend, was a kind-hearted Roman priest who married young couples against the wishes of Emperor Claudius II, and was beheaded for his deeds on the 14th of February. In truth, the exact origins and identity of St. Valentine are unclear. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, "At least three different Saint Valentines, all of them martyrs, are mentioned in the early martyrologies under the date of 14 February." Two of these men lived in the third century A.D., one being the bishop of Interamna (now Terni, Italy) and the other a priest of Rome. (Some speculate that these two figures were actually the same man.) Both seem to have been persecuted for their beliefs; the Roman priest reportedly was beaten and then beheaded on the orders of Emperor Claudius II, on or about the year 270. Legends vary on how the martyr's name became connected with romance: the date of his death may have become mingled with the feast of Lupercalia, a pagan festival of love, or with the ancient belief that birds first mate in the middle of February. In modern times Valentine's Day is a day of special romantic sentiment and gift-giving among lovers.
do saints remind you of action figures? they remind me of action figures. crazy powers and resistances to poisons and freakishly elaborate martyrdoms. if i had been Catholic growing up i would have always gotten in trouble for thinking that. i got in trouble for watching Madonna's Like a Prayer video when i was little. kinda not the same thing as wondering who would be a good saint to hang out with Spiderman and Wonder Woman. but wouldn't a fire-proof saint have been useful?
today stands to be the happiest V-day in memory. i'm so thankful that Husband is home, safe and sound and that just pales everything else: i am so happy. for V-day, Husband got us new curtains for our bedroom and put them up yesterday. he also bought me an awesome vanity where i can sit and do makeup and be girly and sing "I Adore Being A Girl;" we call that area of the bedroom Princess Land. i got Husband a new Skagen watch (as his titanium one has gone broken and his other one has gone missing) and i think it was a big hit.
and, in a small way, it does support the Dutch.