Does anyone really know the true meaning behind Valentine’s Day? Some, like WTAMU student Jimbo Gonzales, do not have a Valentine. Ren Chiapetta, an Agricultural Business major, said her dog Blaze was her favorite Valentine’s gift she received from her fiancé.

Every holiday has some historical meaning behind it. Is this holiday really about the ‘L’ word? Or could it really have began from a true love story from the past?The history of Valentine’s Day and the story of its patron saint are a big mystery. Valentine’s contains both Christian and Roman Catholic vestiges.

Some of the Valentine’s history comes from St.Valentine. During the third century in Rome, it is said that St. Valentine was the priest of the Catholic church. When Emperor Claudius II decreed that all single men made better soldiers than those with wives and children, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine was outraged by the emperor and still performed marriages for young couples. When Claudius heard of what the priest was doing he ordered his death.

Another story suggests that Valentine may have been killed for helping prisoners escape after they had been brutally beaten and tortured. He was caught and put in jail where he fell in love with the jailor’s daughter. While there, he sent the first Valentine’s greeting card which said, “From your Valentine.” Eventually, Valentine’s Day came from the day Valentine was sent to death.

However, many people think Valentine’s Day is really a day of true romance.

“I believe that Valentines is just a special day to show how much you care for your partner,” Kellie Vincent, an Education major, said. “We should show the same care and love all year round.