At the Heart of Valentines Day

AT THE LOVE YOUL! S HEARTE OF VALENTINE'S DAY A look at the legends and celebrations that make the dn notorious holiday worldwide. Gift giving has been the tenet of Valentine's Day ever since paper cards were first exchanged in the Middle Ages. And today, with $15.7 billion worth of cards, roses and gifts exchanged each year, celebrating Valentine's Day may be optional, but acknowledging it is not. From Korean singles-only black noodle soup to Catholic masses commemorating 14 different martyred Valentines, observations of the holiday vary. Check out the global goodwill of St. Valentine's Day: IN THE LUS. VALENTINE'S LENVES A TRAIL 180 MILLION XOXO Valentine's Day Cards are exchanged annually. E TАИЕ That's enough to give every person in Paris, the city of love, Or to give every student in an average-sized second grade class 81 VALENTINE'S 6 MILLION DAY CARDS. CARDS EACH. 8 BILLION CANDY HEARTS About are sold in the six weeks around Valentine's day. (Over 200 million boxes.) All of which SELLS OUT in 6 weeks. (That means they're moving around 190 million hearts per day.) SOLD OUT WEEK 1 WEEK 6 Necco turns out over 100,000 LBS OF SWEETHEARTS DAY during production season. 2010 featured new phrases like "TWEET ME" & "YOU ROCK". 196 MILLION roses are produced and grown for Valentine's day. 2002 2012 That's enough roses to decorate 10 YEARS OF ROSE PARADES. Flower prices typically increase 30% in the six weeks around Valentine's Day. In 2011, Consumer spending on Valentine's hit $15.7 BILLION. Nearly 3x what consumers spent on $15.7B music for the whole year. ($5.9 billion) $5.9B Enough money to buy a modestly priced diamond necklace for every married woman in America (ALL 63 MILLION OF THEM). MORE THAN AN OBLIGATION Though many bemoan the commercialization of the holiday, there's something to be said about the POSITIVE BENEFITS OF GIVING TO THE ONES YOU LOVE. Studies have shown that giving and altruism REDUCES STRESS. There is even evidence to suggest it helps people COPE WITH AND HEAL FROM ILLNESS MORE SUCCESSFULLY. Studies also show that giving may result in BETTER PHYSICAL HEART HEALTH. VALENTINE'S DAY AROUND THE WORLD Celebrated JANUARY 25TH. WALES "DYDD SANTES ST. DWYNWEN DWYNWEN" is the patron saint of lovers. (Sain't Dwynwen's Day) Celebrated FEBRUARY 14TH. SWEDEN Was launched in by the FLOWER INDUSTRY “ALLA HJÄRTANS in the 1960s. DAG" (All Heart's Day) Celebrated FEBRUARY 14TH. FINLAND "YSTÄVÄNPÄIVÄ" Focused more on all (Friend's Day) FRIENDS & LOVED ONES, not just romantic love. Legend says St. Valentine causes plants and flowers to start growing on FEBRUARY 14TH. SLOVENIA "VALENTINES DAY" St. Valentine's day is also thought to be the day that BIRDS PROPOSE MARRIAGE TO EACH OHTER. Celebrates Valentine's Day on FEBRUARY 14TH, JAPAN when women traditionally give chocolate to men. "VALENTINES DAY" In the 1980s, the Japanese National & "WHITE DAY" Confectionary Industry Association launched "White Day" on MARCH 14TH. It is a day for men to respond to the women that gave them chocolate on Valentine's Day and are expected to give gifts 2-3X MORE VALUABLE than what they received. THE 14TH OF EVERY MONTH is a love-related day, EE those are the most obscure. These KOREA are the most widely celebrated: "Vale 's Day": February 14th "VALENTINES DAY", "WHITE DAY", Women give chocolate to men. White Day: March 14th, Men give non-chocolate candy to & "BLACK DAY" women. "Black Day": April 14th Single men and women mourn their loneliness by eating black noodles. Celebrated JUNE 12TH. BRAZIL "DIA DOS Single women often NAMORADOS" PERFORM RITUALS in hopes of finding a good husband or boyfriend. (Lover's Day) Couples exchange GIFTS, FLOWERS, & CARDS. WILL THE REAL SAINT VALENTINE PLEASE STAND UP? There are 14 different martyred saints from ancient Rome named VALENTINE. SAINT VALENTINE PROTECTS: Affianced couples, bee keepers, happy marriages, and love. SAINT VALENTINE PROTECTS AGAINST: Fainting, plague, and epilepsy. It's popular to cite the legend that ST. VALENTINE WAS MARTYRED FOR MARRYING YOUNG COUPLES IN SECRET. Under the reign of emperor Claudius, marriage between the young was forbidden so that he could more easily build an army. Valentine defied the decree and continued to perform secret marriages. Before his execution, he allegedly fell in love with his jailer's daughter and sent her a love message, signing it "FROM YOUR VALENTINE". LOVE YML! Long passed are days of testifying love through martyrdom, but it's certainly a sweet tradition to set aside one day a year to make a point of declaring devotion. Today's annual Valentines budget is spectacular, but with the statistics surrounding the health and mental benefits of giving gifts, maybe it's not such a bad thing. 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