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Hello All,

I wish you and your family, friends, near and dear........

A very happy, joyful, purposeful and Love-full Valentine's Day wishes (14/02/09).

Valentine's Day or Saint Valentine's Day is a holiday celebrated on February 14th by many people throughout the world. In the West, it is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other by sending Valentine's cards, presenting flowers, or offering gifts and confectionery.

The day became associated with romantic love in the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished. The holiday is named after two among the numerous Early Christian martyrs named Valentine. The name "Valentine", derived from ‘valens’ (worthy), was popular in late antiquity. Numerous early Christian martyrs were named Valentine. Until 1969, the Catholic Church formally recognized eleven Valentine's Days. The Valentines honored on February 14th are Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni. Valentine of Rome was a priest in Rome who suffered martyrdom about AD 269 and was buried on the Via Flaminia. His relics are at the Church of Saint Praxed in Rome and at Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland. Valentine of Terni became bishop of Interamna (modern Terni) about AD 197 and is said to have been killed during the persecution of Emperor Aurelian. He is also buried on the Via Flaminia, but in a different location than Valentine of Rome. His relics are at the Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni. The Catholic Encyclopedia also speaks of a third saint named Valentine who was mentioned in early martyrologies under date of February 14th. He was martyred in Africa.

An alternative theory from Belarus states that the holiday originates from the story of Saint Valentine, who upon rejection by his mistress was so heartbroken that he took a knife to his chest and sent her, his still-beating heart as a token of his undying love for her. Hence, heart-shaped cards are now sent as a tribute to his overwhelming passion and suffering. Another appropriate lore has been embroidered in modern times to portray Valentine as a priest who refused an unattested law attributed to the 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, 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" and since then 'Valentine' became an alternate for 'lover/sweetheart'.

In Japan, Valentine's Day is observed by females who present chocolate gifts (either store-bought or handmade), usually to a male, as an expression of love. The handmade chocolate is usually preferred by the receiver, because it is a sign that the receiving male is the girl's "only one". On White Day, a holiday celebrated on March 14th, one month after Valentine's Day, in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan; the converse happens. Males who received a "honmei-choco" [chocolate of love] or "Giri-choco" [chocolate of courtesy] on Valentine's Day are expected to return the favor by giving gifts. Traditionally, popular White Day gifts are cookies, candies, white chocolate, marshmallows as well as jewelry, lingerie, and stuffed animals. Sometimes the term ‘sanbai gaeshi’ (literally, "thrice the return") is used to describe the generally recited rule that the return gift should be two to three times the cost of the Valentine's gift and usually more expensive.

Black Day, celebrated on April 14th, is a South Korean informal tradition for single/solo people to get together and eat ‘Jajangmyeon’, also spelled Jjajangmyeon, a Korean dish derived from the Chinese dish ‘zhajiang mian’ (wheat noodles with black bean sauce). The idea is that those who didn't give or receive gifts on Valentine's Day or White Day can get together and eat Jjajangmyeon, white Korean noodles with black bean sauce (hence the name), to commiserate their singledom. Valentine's Day has regional traditions in the UK. In Norfolk, a character called 'Jack' Valentine knocks on the rear door of houses leaving sweets and presents for children. In Portugal it is more commonly referred to as "Dia dos Namorados" (Boy/Girlfriend's Day). Valentine's Day is called ‘Sevgililer Gunu’ in Turkey, which translates into "Sweethearts' Day".

The day is most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of "valentines"; the Modern Valentine symbols include the heart-shaped outline, doves, and the figure of the winged ‘Cupid’. Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have largely given way to mass-produced greeting cards. The rise of Internet popularity at the turn of the millennium is creating new traditions. Millions of people use, every year, digital means of creating and sending Valentine's Day greeting messages such as e-cards, love coupons or printable greeting cards, expressing ‘Love’.

Happy Valentines’/HV/High Voltage day.

Many many happy returns of the day.

All the best and take care….

With thanks, regards and best wishes for the life and love you desire and deserve,
G.Srikanth.