Valentine's Day: A History in Flowers

As a holiday recognized by couples and singles throughout the world, Valentine's Day has many different meanings to a variety of people. Valentine’s Day was originally named for Saint Valentine, a Roman Priest who defied Emperor Claudius II's decree that his soldiers could not marry thus making them better solders. Valentine preformed secret marriages, none-the-less, and was imprisoned for his treason. There he is said to have fallen in love with the jailer’s daughter, and he wrote her many love notes signed “Your Valentine”, hence the popular endearment known today.
As far as the actual day picked to celebrate the Valentine's Day Holiday, this has several origins. One explanation is that the Christian Church picked February 14th as a direct jab towards the pagan holiday of Lupercalia which celebrates the welcoming of spring. There was a Fertility Festival and a ritual where all the single woman of the village put their names into a hat and the bachelors of the village had to fish out one name per man. These names would be drawn together for the year in a courting ritual to try and make a love match. These couples, if they worked out, were also said to be more fertile together. The celebration of Lupercalia is what makes flowers an acceptable and cherished gift by many men and women today.
During the season there were many different varieties of flowers to choose from as a compliment to a Valentine's Day love note. Mostly, these include a variety of roses. Roses are an overarching symbol of affection and each color represents a different spectrum and stepping stone in a blossoming relationship. Given as a gift in celebration of a fertile year, both physically and emotionally, the rose connects back to Lupercalia in its different forms of expression. Just as the couples of the Lupercalia love match were getting to know one another during the blooming season, so can modern day couples get to know one another by showing their ever-growing affection through an assortment of rose choices.
This Valentine's Day don't just visit a Hallmark store and grab a trite card, learn from the fertile past and truly celebrate the bond you have with each other. By taking the time to both research and handpick through an assortment of different rose colors and varieties all with special meanings, you will show your loved one the devotion and time honored classiness that Roman's expressed in years past.
Visit the RoseSource.com Rose Gallery to see our wide selection of rose colors and varieties.

RoseSource.com: MOVING FORWARD WITH OUR SUPPORT TO THE COMMUNITY

Since our first visit to the Taxoalo community, RoseSource.com has seen and felt the issues of the people. We have decided to address their problems the best way we know how and to the best of our capabilities. Our visits have accumulated into a deeper understanding of the communities needs, which we've taken to the outlaying communities by seeking the support of the people in Quito as well as other organizations so they may better understand this issue. At RoseSource.com we are committed to continue educating communities and obtaining the support needed to improve the living conditions of this community in Ecuador. Which is why during the holiday season, when caring and giving are most important, we propose to help those in need. By buying from RoseSource.com you will be acknowledging and helping the people in Taxoalo.

For every flower you buy during the Valentine's Day Season of 2009, RoseSource.com will donate US$ 0.02 cents to the Taxoalo community. We are seeking the support from our American customers and friends, we repeat, per each stem bought for St. Valentine’s Day at RoseSource.com, by typing in the code RS-TAXOALO with your order before signing out, RoseSource.com will donate funds to the Taxoalo community. Our purpose in donating is to create a fund to help improve the school’s sanitary infrastructure and to start a development project aimed to achieve the community’s self-sustainability. Every flower bought can bring us closer to our ultimate goal of helping these people. We’ve already received an immediate, from the heart response from a young Ecuadorian couple, Santiago Chacon and his wife. Every year they donate gifts and candies to the boys and girls of the poorest rural areas of Ecuador.

On Sunday, December 14, 2008, thanks to their support, we were able to deliver 550 gifts consisting of bags of treats, blankets and food to the children of Taxoalo and the surrounding communities.

Let's not let our efforts and the compassion derived from our actions, stop this New Year. Take the time to donate and help with RoseSource.com, you won't regret it.