Today’s post comes entirely from a message from a dear friend.  I thank him and wish you ALL a Happy Valentine’s Day!

Happy St. Valentine’s Day!

Saint Valentine was a Roman Priest at a time when there was an emperor called Claudias, who had an edict that prohibited the marriage of young people. This was based on the hypothesis that unmarried soldiers fought better than married soldiers because married soldiers might be afraid of what might happen to them or their wives or families if they died. However St Valentine secretly married them anyway.

In the year 269 AD, St. Valentine was eventually caught, imprisoned and tortured for performing marriage ceremonies against the edict. The story goes that the last words he wrote were in a note to the daughter of a Roman official encouraging her to faithfully love to the end her new husband.

He inspired today’s romantic missives by signing it, “from your Valentine.”