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Valentine’s Day is quickly approaching and for many, it is a day that can cause some extreme stress!
We all want to surprise our Valentine with a special gift, a great dinner and a wonderful time. But the worry sets in that maybe we aren’t doing enough, or the gifts won’t be well recieved. Or worse yet, do they even like the restuarant that the reservations were made at?
Flowers! Should they be delivered? Should I bring them with me?
What about jewelery? Candy?
Don’t forget the card!
It can be very frustrating!
All of this talk about Valentine’s Day got me thinking about how this holiday started. After doing some research online and watching some videos on the History Channel website about the beginnings of Valentine’s Day, I figured it would be much easier to change course and discuss other areas of this LOVE filled holiday
When we were young and in school, Valentine’s Day was just another party in class. There would be treats, we decorated shoe boxes and delivered Valentine cards to our friends.
Ah yes, the good ol’ days.
According to Woman’s Day magazine, here are some facts about Valentine’s Day that you may not have known.
Valentine’s Day is NOT the biggest greeting card holiday. To my surprise, neither is Mother’s Day. Christmas holds that honor.
There are nearly 2,000,000 marriages a year, or 6,600 a day. If you are single, keep looking!
I always say that I am a lucky guy as my wife is not a fan of flowers. However, men account for over 73% of flower sales at Valentine’s Day.
Speaking of flowers, red roses are the most popular, not that it should come as a surprise. The red rose was the favorite flower of Venus, the Roman goddes of love.
Candy is a huge part of this sweet holiday. In fact, the National Confectioners Association (NCA) says that 94% of Americans say that they would like to recieve a gift of candy or chocolate this year.
While the majority WANT candy, only 70% of people will actually give the sweet treats to one to three friends of family members.
The NCA goes on to say that candy sales will approach $1.1 billion, up 1.6% over last year. This number is bolstered by the fact that 43% of Americans will purchase their own box of chocolates this year.
Oh, and by the way, the first Valentine’s box of candy was introduced by Richard Cadbury back in 1868.
One of my favorite Valentine’s Day memories involves my Grandma and Grandpa Wellington. As I walked into the kitchen that morning, grandma wished me a Happy Valentine’s Day. Grandpa, who was in the dining room, disappeared a few seconds later. I assume he forgot what day it was or that it simply crept up on him.
In any event, he came back several minutes later with a plain white envelope that had “Happy Valentine’s Day” written on it with a couple of heart stickers and handed it to grandma.
Inside the envelope was a $20 bill.
I don’t know why, but to me, there is something very sweet and enduring in that.
Submitted by Mark McGlothlen
