First Love

It's love week.  Today is Valentine's day and all the gab is focused on love...and retail.  Oy.

I had the opportunity to share with our homeschool group this week about the origin of holidays.  Why do we celebrate these special days?  We discussed the big holidays, Christmas and Easter, Thanksgiving, 4th of July.  I had lots of raised hands and correct responses to the "why" do we celebrate.   We discussed how each family has different traditions and that some families don't celebrate certain holidays at all.  But the big question of the day is...   ....   ..... (haha, I cannot stand it when the reality shows do this and then they break off for a commercial).  The big question is... why do we celebrate Valentine's Day? 

Lots of noses scrunched up, heads cocked to the side and a few giggles erupted. 
A little voice called out "it is a holiday about love". 
"That's right", I say.  "But why, how did it start?"
There was silence, which is strange for a room full of elementary age kiddos.  Nobody knew the origin of this "love" holiday.  This works out well for me, since my lesson would have been wildly boring if they all already knew the reasons! 

I had done my research as I myself had no clue why we feed the economy on this 14th day of February.  There were some differing accounts of the history.  The basic theories all focus on a man named Valentine.  During this time in history the emperor of Rome had declared that no man in his army was to married, and he made it against the law.  (he thought bachelors made better soldiers, no attachments, no distractions) Of course these men and their loves did not stop loving each other, or wanting to find love, and so this Valentine man felt pity for them and married them in secret.  The accounts I read were sketchy on Valentine's authority, whether he was a priest, etc.  Well, of course the emperor got wind of these secret marriages and put Valentine in prison.  It is said that one of the prison guards had a daughter who would visit Valentine and bring him food. Some versions say she was blind, some that she was a child, others that she was not, some say there was a miracle and her vision was restored by Valentine's prayer, others say he fell in love with her.  It all comes down to the fact that he was sentenced to be...un-headed..., what a romantic tale.  He wrote a final letter to this girl/woman, and signed it "with love, your Valentine".  Yep, that's how it all came about.  I am sure there is more technicality to how it developed into a holiday, but the jist is that people were endeared to his parting words and started signing notes of love in the same matter, from "your Valentine". 

Minus the beheading, it is the story of a man who valued the right for young couples to find and profess love, and met his death because of his willingness to help them. I found a cute book The Story of Valentine's Day that summed all this up in a kid friendly manner minus the death.  The kids finally had a bit of history for the "love" holiday.

So today our society has deducted the history of the holiday.  It is meant as a day to share love.  Not a bad idea.  It is a bit over the top, too focused on the commercial giving of gifts and not enough on the actual giving of love. 

Our group talked about ways you can show someone you love them.  We came up with a long list.  Many were about gift giving, but others were about smiles, hugs, time, help, and friendship.  We decided you don't have to spend money to show someone that you love them. 

I wanted to finish my lesson with a parting thought.  Did Valentine "invent love"?  No.  We were loved first.  Long ago.  By a man on a cross.  By his father who sent him.  We are loved wholly and completely by a perfect God who wove us in our mother's wombs.  A God who sacrificed a son for our sins.  There is no formal mention of Valentine's day in the Bible.  But the resounding theme is LOVE.  That we are and that we should love. 

Some clever person found a clever coincidence in God's word.  I like to use this illustration to remind my kiddos that God is mingled in all we do, and we can find him anywhere, and He is everywhere.  He knew there would be a Valentine and it would evolve into a commercial circus of a holiday, but He gave a way to
link it to his word. 
So I hope on this day filled with chocolate and flowers, that you will take a second to remember that you were loved first, by a mighty God.  I hope that as you show others your love today, that you will share His love too.

Happy Valentine's Day friends!
Sarah