The Magic and Beauty of Roses on Valentine’s Day

Why should you send roses to your loved one this Valentine’s Holiday? The rose is the symbol of love, of magic, of hope, and of passion, the perfect pictogram to let your loved one know how you feel about him or her! The rose represents ultimate beauty, love, admiration and perfection. It is the absolute messenger of unconditional love and passion colored Romance!

A dozen red roses remains the classic Valentine's Day favorite. However, many women report that they adore roses in other colors just as much. There are hundreds of colors to choose from. The choices are endless and it's easier than ever to select a rose that is as unique as your sweetheart.
Just like people, flowers come in hundreds of shapes and sizes. When it comes to Valentine's Day gifts, carefully selecting the flower varieties and colors you send will result in a thoughtful, customized gift your sweetheart will treasure. The first step is to consider your sweetheart's preferences. What colors does he or she like? Men respond well to vibrant, crispy colors such as red, orange, purple and blue. Women tend to delight in pastel tones of pinks, peaches and lavenders. Does she have any favorite flowers? What are his hobbies? Your florist can create arrangements that revolve around your sweetheart's favorite hobby, sport or pastime. Ask yourself what message you want to convey. Consult with your rose specialist we can explain the assortment of possibilities available.

Some History of Valentine's Day

 

February 14th, the holiday of Love! Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. Who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? The history of Valentine's Day -- and its patron saint -- is shrouded in mystery. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.
Most scholars believe that the St. Valentine of the holiday was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. During this time around 270 A.D., Emperor Claudius ll prohibited marriages for young men, claiming that bachelors made better soldiers. Valentine continued to secretly perform marriage ceremonies but was eventually apprehended by the Romans and ordered by Claudius to be put to death.

Another legend has it that Valentine, imprisoned by Claudius; fell in love with the daughter of his jailer who visited him during confinement. Before he was executed, he allegedly sent her a letter signed "from your Valentine" an expression that is still used today. We could say this marked the first Valentine’s Day.

Probably the most plausible story surrounding St. Valentine is one not focused on Eros(passionate love) but on agape (Christian love): he was martyred for refusing to renounce his religion.

Another valentine gentleman you may be wondering about is Cupid (Latin cupido, "desire"). In Roman mythology Cupid is the son of Venus, goddess of love. His counterpart in Greek mythology is Eros, god of love. Cupid is often said to be a mischievous boy who goes around wounding b

The Magic and Beauty of Roses on Valentine’s Day

oth gods and humans with his arrows, causing them to fall in love. The Romans believed white roses grew where the tears of Venus fell, as she mourned the loss of her beloved Adonis. Her son Cupid, while being stung by a bee, shot arrows in the rose garden; the sting of the arrows became thorns. Venus pricked her foot on a thorn, and the droplets of blood dyed the roses red.

More Bits on Amore!

 

It could be that we celebrate Valentines Day on the 14th because this is the day that St. Valentine died. However, some believe that the celebration of Valentines Day was an attempt by the Christian Church to ‘christianize’ the celebration of the pagan Lupercalia festival. The Festival was held on the 15th of February. Lupercalia was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus. Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine's Day around 498 A.D. The Lupercalia festival was deemed un-Christian and outlawed.

The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. The greeting, which was written in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England. 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. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.) The first commercial Valentine's Day greeting cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine, made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as "scrap".