God loves you.

You just have to read some of the verses from the Bible, in the image above, to know this is true.

But who was the original Valentine? What is the myth that surrounds the man who has become the icon of love? And how have our traditions been established?

Saint Valentine of Rome is believed to have been imprisoned for conducting marriage ceremonies for soldiers, who were not permitted to wed. He is also understood to have healed his jailer’s daughter while in prison.

By the 14th Century, at the time of Geoffrey Chaucer, February 14th had started to be associated with courtly love and by the 18th Century the customs of sending flowers, confectionary and heartfelt words had been established. Mass produced cards were replacing handwritten homemade messages by the 19th Century.

For some people in the UK, Valentine’s Day can be a very lonely day, especially if you don’t receive a Valentine’s card, whereas in the USA people give cards and gifts to their friends and family, not just to the people they love or desire romantically. Instead of being classed as a time for commercial enterprises to boom by retailers and manufacturers, Valentine’s Day should return to to being a time of heartfelt love when you can show love from the depths of our hearts, not just our wallets, with acts of kindness shown to our friends, relatives, neighbours and colleagues .

You don’t have to send a card or a bouquet of flowers to show you care. You can demonstrate how much you feel for someone by calling your loved one, making a meal at home instead of buying one or by just being there when they need you.

Maybe we should treat every day like Valentine’s Day and be kind to people all year around that way maybe the world would be a better place to live in. Don’t you agree?