Celebrating Valentine’s Day
Published 6:34 pm Wednesday, February 13, 2019
There are several stories that try to explain how Valentine’s Day got its start. According to one legend, St. Valentine was a priest in Rome, who defied an order from Emperor Claudius II. Claudius believed single men made better soldiers than men with wife and families, so he outlawed marriage for young men. However, Valentine kept marrying young couples in secret and was eventually ordered to death.
Other legends include Valentine helped Christians escape Roman prisons, and Valentine sending the first ever “valentine” from jail to a girl who visited him while he was imprisoned.
Regardless of the true origins of the holiday, today we celebrate by reminding our significant other of our feelings. Candy, chocolate and flowers will be bought in droves.
Valentine’s Day is right up there with Christmas Day as the most popular days to get engaged each year. Spending also grows each year.
According to the National Retail Federation, an estimated $20.1 billion is expected to be spent on Valentine’s Day gifts, an average of $161.96 per person.
In LaGrange, there’s a free place for teenagers to celebrate the holiday. The LaGrange Youth Council is hosting a free teen movie at Sweetland Amphitheatre starting at 5 p.m. A local music act will be performing and the movie “The Proposal” will begin at 6:30 p.m.
Concessions, carnations and ice skating will also be available. Proceeds from concession and carnation sales will be donated to the National Alliance on Mental Illness of West Georgia.
The goal of this event is to provide an event for young people put on by the Youth Council. The group voted to adopt the issue of mental health awareness and continues to learn more about local programs, including the Troup County Mental Health Court.
For everyone else, there are plenty of dining options and a movie theater in LaGrange for a date night.
In the hustle and bustle of today’s world, there’s a lot of work to be done and not as much family time as anyone would like. But today we hope you get a few minutes to spend with your significant other.
