We are under attack!

There is an epidemic out there that I know concerns a great number of us. You may ask yourself a few of the following questions: What is this epidemic? Is there a cure? Do I need a vaccine? Is there no hope for man kind?

Now, before you run out and do anything rash, let me explain to you about this epidemic commonly known as V.D.

What is V.D?

V.D. is a foul disease that is forced upon us by couples who feel the need to flaunt their relationship. V.D. affects us all on level or another. I know that V.D. is very special for most, but it is a virus that must be contained. There is no cure and it causes single people to do things they otherwise wouldn't.

Of course, when I speak of V.D. I speak of Valentine's Day. It is a holiday that has been completely commercialized and emphasized to the point of exhaustion! Gone are the days when somebody shows their affection on a regular basis. Gone are the days of surprising another with a heart felt gift. Now everything is expected. If you don't have plans for V.D. you are treated as a leper.

Saint Valentine's Day should be a wonderful holiday, but it has been bastardized by jewelry, chocolate, and greeting card companies.

A BRIEF HISTORY:

Since Legenda Aurea still provided no connections whatsoever with sentimental love, appropriate lore has been embroidered in modern times to portray Valentine as a priest who refused an unattested law attributed to 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.

There is an additional modern embellishment to The Golden Legend, provided by American Greetings to History.com, and widely repeated despite having no historical basis whatsoever. On the evening before Valentine was to be executed, he would have written the first "valentine" card himself, addressed to a young girl variously identified as his beloved,^[15] as the jailer's daughter whom he had befriended and healed,^[16] or both. It was a note that read "From your Valentine."^[15]

(previous excerpt taken from Wikipedia)

People don't seem to know the history anymore, and feel anxiety as every February 14 draws closer. Most of this pressure seems to fall on men. It has almost become an expectation that every February 14, something romantic and outrageous must be planned by the man.

I would be willing to wager that most men only do something romantic in the hopes that maybe it will be rewarded with sex. That is poor motivation. A man should want to show a woman (and vice versa) how they feel about their partner more than just one day a year.

As I close I would like to extend my heart-felt wishes that you all enjoy your V.D. and that you share it with the person you care about the most!