It is surprising how many people assume that Valentines is a modern tradition designed to make Hallmark, Godiva and Tulsa florists a bundle. They couldn’t be more wrong. Awareness that Valentine’s Day is all about love couldn’t possibly have escaped anyone’s attention. The fact is that we’ve been celebrating this special day on February 14th for so long that its true meaning and history have been lost. With the passing of time, so has the symbology associated with it.
Red roses, hearts, ribbons and lace surround Valentine’s Day.
This isn’t just because your heart is red. It goes back to beyond the language of flowers and the fact that most of them that convey a message of love are red. The hearts are a more recent part of the Valentine’s Day theme, and come from a time when it was assumed that emotions came not from the brain, but straight from the heart.
Lace is predominant simply, not just because it is a highly feminine holiday. Ribbons are a symbol of remembrance, and were once important year around and not just on Valentine’s Day. There was a time when all women’s hair was bound with ribbon and women carried lace, or lace adorned handkerchiefs. In those days, knights rode off to battle, leaving that fair maiden behind for long spells. These men carried their girl’s ribbons or lace handkerchiefs with them as a sign of love, devotion and remembrance of her patiently awaiting his return at home.
It was an honor for a man to possess a woman’s ribbon or lace hankie. Somehow, this ancient tradition became a part of not just Valentine’s Day, but the very art of floral design as employed by every Tulsa florist and their contemporaries around the world. Ribbon has long been a part of floral arrangements, whether ornamental tucks, streamers, or a lettered banner. And you thought that was just all decoration! In case you’re wondering, we don’t know what happened to the lace tradition, but Hallmark still gets it.
Valentine’s Day began in ancient Rome.
It all began with a priest named Valentine and Emperor Claudius. Soldiers were forbidden to marry under his rule. Claudius felt that such a union sapped a fighting man’s strength. Valentine was secretly marrying them off the record, which got him tossed into prison. He also fell in love with his jailor’s daughter, and before being executed on February 14th, 269 A.D., left her a note declaring his affections and farewell that he signed, ‘From Your Valentine’.
This was the beginning of sending love notes and Valentine’s cards on February 14th. As you can see, Hallmark didn’t invent the Valentine card. The language of flowers, and most especially red roses defining a statement of true love isn’t something cooked up by Tulsa florists or those in any other locations either. Tossing chocolates into the mix is pretty simple to explain, the confection has long been known to be an aphrodisiac. As for roses, they have always been the queen of flowers, and red roses convey the most powerful message of all… without you ever uttering one word.
Flower Express will be open all weekend to help you prepare properly for Valentine’s Day. We’re normally open Tuesday through Saturday, but this special day falls on Monday in 2011. In honor of our customers’ biggest floral needs of the year, we’ve made special compensations with our regular business hours. You’ll find our Tulsa flower shop’s doors open on Sunday and Monday too this year.
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