{"id":342,"date":"2012-02-14T09:00:31","date_gmt":"2012-02-14T14:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/?p=342"},"modified":"2014-08-01T16:11:22","modified_gmt":"2014-08-01T20:11:22","slug":"happy-valentine%e2%80%99s-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/happy-valentine%e2%80%99s-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Happy Valentine\u2019s Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today, February 14th, is celebrated as Saint Valentine\u2019s Day in the United States.\u00a0 Saint Valentine\u2019s Day, more often simply referred to as \u2018Valentine\u2019s Day\u2019, is a holiday celebrating love and affection between romantic couples.\u00a0 This holiday has its origins in Christianity, though today it is a holiday celebrated by people of all religions in the United States. This day is named after an early Christian martyr*, Saint Valentine.<\/p>\n

This holiday was first established in 496 AD, but I imagine Valentine\u2019s Day was celebrated very differently then compared to how it is celebrated now.\u00a0 In fact this holiday only became associated with romantic love in the Middle Ages in Europe, during the years 1100-1300.\u00a0 It was at this time that love poems and later Valentine\u2019s Day cards were introduced into the celebration of this holiday.\u00a0 Now, card, chocolates, flowers, even presents like jewelry, are often exchanged between couples on this day.\u00a0 Although, I think it is fair to say that men often do more of the giving of the gifts on Valentine\u2019s Day and women do more of the receiving.\u00a0 Both men and women are equally likely to give their loved ones cards.\u00a0 The US Greeting Card Association believes that approximately 190 million valentines** are sent each year in the United States.\u00a0 Now, that is a lot of cards!\u00a0\u00a0 Many of these cards are not given by adults in romantic relationships but by children who also participate in this holiday.\u00a0 Children often decorate their classrooms, dress in red or wear clothes with hearts on them, exchange cards, and give candy to their friends at school.\u00a0 One of the most popular Valentine\u2019s Day candies are little sweet crunchy*** hearts with messages about love on them.\u00a0 You can see exactly what these candy hearts look like and learn more about these traditional American Valentine\u2019s Day candies at the website for the company that makes them, Necco.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.necco.com\/OurBrands\/Default.asp?BrandID=8<\/a><\/p>\n

The type of short messages these hearts have on them, include:<\/p>\n

TRUE LOVE
\nLET\u2019S KISS
\nLOVE
\nALL MINE
\nYOU & ME
\nLOVE HER
\n#1 FAN<\/p>\n

all of these messages are about love and friendship, which are perfect for celebrating Valentine’s Day.<\/p>\n

* martyr = a person who is killed because of their religious or other beliefs
\n** valentines = Valentine\u2019s Day cards
\n*** crunchy = making a sharp noise when bitten or crushed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Today, February 14th, is celebrated as Saint Valentine\u2019s Day in the United States.\u00a0 Saint Valentine\u2019s Day, more often simply referred to as \u2018Valentine\u2019s Day\u2019, is a holiday celebrating love and affection between romantic couples.\u00a0 This holiday has its origins in Christianity, though today it is a holiday celebrated by people of all religions in the…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":85,"featured_media":343,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[154809,154071,154991,155166,163,154444],"class_list":["post-342","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","tag-candy-hearts","tag-happy-valentines-day","tag-saint-valentines-day","tag-valentine-cards","tag-valentines-day","tag-valentines"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t