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We love holidays, mostly because each has its theme to prompt the imagination for a special party or entertaining theme.  And, because Valentine's Day is "color-specific," it provides splendid ideas for dinners à deux or for special friends, menus, gifts of flowers, chocolates and bibelots, as well as for romantic destinations.

The history of St. Valentine's Day is an interesting one and, like many of our holidays, has its roots in religious observations mixed with ancient roots and lore.  It makes for interesting cultural history.  The history of St. Valentine's Day — and its patron saint — is shrouded in mystery.  Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition.  To obscure the issue, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine, or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served in Rome during the third century.  When Emperor Claudius II decided that unmarried men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men — his source for Roman legions.  Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued secretly to perform marriages for young lovers.  When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered his death.  Martyrdom enhanced his image and, by the Middle Ages, the romantic Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

While some believe that Valentine's Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine's death  — which probably occurred around 270 A.D,  others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine's feast day in the middle of February in an effort to "christianize" celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival, a fertility celebration observed annually on February 15.   Pope Gelasius I reconceived this pagan festival as a Christian feast day, declaring in about 496 A.D. that February 14 be observed as St. Valentine's Day.

Over the centuries, the holiday evolved, and there are wonderful references in literature about the romantic day, well worth a focus at another time.  By the 17th century, gift-giving and exchanging hand-made cards made of lace, ribbons, and featuring cupids and hearts,  became common among the wealthy in England.   Later, it became widespread for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes.  By the end of the 18th century, printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one's feelings was discouraged.  The tradition of Valentine's cards did not become widespread in the United States, however, until the 1850s, when Esther A. Howland, a Mount Holyoke graduate and native of Worcester, Mass., began mass-producing them. Today, of course, the holiday has become a booming commercial success. According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year, following Christmas, when an estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent.

The history of flowers and chocolates as Valentine's gifts may have to wait until another year.  Needless to say, the giving of chocolate is big business. It is reported that more than 58 million pounds of chocolate will be sold during the week of Valentine's Day, amounting to $34 million.  One hundred ten million roses will be bought and delivered in the three days leading up to Valentine’s Day, the biggest flower occasion for the industry.

The inspirations for Valentine's celebrations are so many that we decided to make a photo collage, so to speak, to prompt ideas for the colorful and romantic day. Almost everyone celebrates the day with a spouse or partner, a special friend, with family members and classmates.  We have searched the archives of our photo collections for your viewing pleasure.

Beautiful table settings with an emphasis on the occasion--

A dinner menu to consider--

Colorful desserts--

Gifts to enhance the table--

Cookbooks for inspiration--

Flowers are a must--

Chocolates are also traditional--

Destinations to enjoy--

Meanwhile, let us remind you --

To make your restaurant reservations

To order your flowers for spouse and special friends and for the dinner party

To select your gifts of chocolates and embellishments for the table

To consider a special destination for a romantic and fun get-away

Please note that the Dallas Opera's production of Romeo and Juliette takes place over the week of Valentine's Day.

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