Roses are Red and so are the Sox

I'm hearing alot of folks grumbling about Valentine's Day and all the hype around it.  One more reason I choose not to shop much...that way whenever any holiday is castrated by shopping malls...I am not deluged with it. I don't watch alot of television during off-season so I'm not exposed to many commercials.  In fact, I have to admit that I'm not too giddy about Valentine's Day when I'm not in any sort of a relationship...so I decided this year to come home to visit my folks and show them my love.  Back to the reason for this post...the background of Valentine's Day. I'm just going to provide a short excerpt from a Wikipedia page(yah I know...real history)
"....appropriate lore has been embroidered in modern times to portray Valentine as a priest who refused an unattested law attributed to Roman Emperor Claudius II, allegedly ordering that young men remain single. The Emperor supposedly did this to grow his army, believing that married men did not make for good soldiers. The priest Valentine, however, secretly performed marriage ceremonies for young men. When Claudius found out about this, he had Valentine arrested and thrown in jail. In an embellishment to The Golden Legend provided by American Greetings, Inc. to History.com and widely repeated, on the evening before Valentine was to be executed, he wrote the first "valentine" himself, addressed to a young girl variously identified as his beloved, as the jailer's daughter whom he had befriended and healed, or both. It was a note that read "From your Valentine."

Now...I'd like to think that Valentine's Day was meant to be simple but sweet. I remember having to make my own Valentine Boxes for elementary school...I loved decorating it...it was the one time that at an early age I could really express my individuality.  Then you waited for everyone in the class to put their valentine's into your box....and THEN you got to open them while you ate cupcakes and punch!  Do they even do that these days at school anymore??  I remember getting a special made heart from a boy I liked in the 5th grade...he cut it out of one of those colored folders you used in school...it was a limeish green color. Then he wrote on it in the best handwriting I ever knew a 5th grade boy could do!

Rickey Dean Carter

    loves

Donna Gail Ellis

        4/ever

Rickey and I of course did not love each other forever but I do have to say that we did remain friends till his death last year. I didn't get to spend any time with him in the end but another good high school friend did (I'm looking at you, Z) and I have to say that it sounds like Rickey Dean was loved very much.  It's tough to find love in this world...the true love that no matter what comes your way...it makes you stronger.  If you have that sort of love, I hope that you're embracing it and stoking the fire to keep it going.  If you'd like to have it, I suggest you begin practicing that sort of love on your friends and a passion you have.  I find that is one thing that most people lack in their lives...a passion about something. I don't care if it's a hobby, a cause, or a baseball team

 

....but you have to have something else in your life besides work and friends if you have no significant other and kids. And no one said that love would last forever...death takes our loved ones sometimes...but it does NOT take The Love. Remember that. Love Remains behind...let it live on.

So today for all you Single Gals and Guys out there....I challenge you to Do Something on Valentine's Day...to show your love and affection for them.  Because honestly we are all loved by someone.