The Legend of Valentine

How about a valentines legend that is both romantic and tragic ?
I have been reading countless tales here and there about the real St Valentine.

The tale you are about to read is over a thousand five hundred years old.

There once was a man named Valentinus a priest, who lived near Rome.
In the times of great persecution to the early church he often helped the early christians in there plight.
And provided covert wedding rituals to soldiers in the roman legions to those they loved. Against the law of the holy roman emperor. Who believed that married men didn't make for good soldiers.
It is said that he cut out parchment hearts to represent the love of Christ, and gave them as tokens to remember Him in there trials. His many good deeds prove to be too much and the holy roman emperor after trying to convert him to paganism, has him imprisoned due to his stout and unwavering faith.
Enter the beautiful jailers daughter, Julia. The jailer I have heard him called Asterius, clutching his blind daughter in his arms takes her to the jail where Valentinus is imprisoned. He has heard of his abilities to heal the sick and his skills with medicine. Begging him to teach and heal his daughter, he brings her every day to glean from the learned mind of the priest. Valentinus spends time reading her the history of Rome,  and describing the world around her, one she cannot see. He teaches her all sorts of things, and most importantly about a loving father who gave the best scarifies to the world through His son. She learns to trust him, and see the world through his eyes, as he sees it, and finds comfort in his strong faith and silent strength to trust in God. Some legends say that Julia is healed by the prayers of Valentinus, others say that her healing was not immediate but that with the priest as her guide she never wavered in faith to believe. Legends say that a bloom of love sprang up between Valentinus and Julia the beautiful blind jailers daughter. whether this is true or just some medieval fancy to create romance out of every legend I couldn't say. Valintinus is taken to be executed but before his sentence is carried out he writes a note to the beautiful jailers daughter and signs it from your Valentine.
His sentence is carried out on the fourteenth of February.
Hence the day we celebrate Love.
Does it seem strange to anyone else that we celebrate the day that a person was martyred for his faith ?
I don't know if the legend is absolutely true, needless to say I won't be swearing in a court of law.
Still I thought it was an interesting story, one I could see being written into a full fledged dramatic and tragic novel. I have heard the one about the jailers daughter helping Valentinus to escape by bringing him the prison keys and by following the sound of his voice makes her way safely through the roman prison. If thats not a dramatic breadcrumb for a novel than I have no idea anymore.

In truth the most important thing to remember today and every day is the beautiful creator of love.
The one who is love through and through. The one who gave you his life so that you might live.
I have often thought about why in the world would it even matter if we all went to hell, it was something we deserved after turning our backs on our maker.
Why would God even worry about the strange creation he had spoke into existence.
Why would after years of struggling with there rebellious ways, become one of them to redeem them.
I asked god this question, I was confussed that after all, after the ultimate betrayal. Why would he still do all that. And to say all that I'm not just saying the immense pain that Christ suffered at our behafs, the worst pain to ever be suffered. But the years of patience, and waiting and guiding. Love isn't just big things you see, it's small and      
 huge and indescribable at the same time.






What I heard was simply, because I AM LOVE. There could be no other way for the creator to be with the creatures made in his image if he didn't. And that's the most beautiful picture I can imagine,
That the Father would want us so much to be his family, he wouldn't just turn his backs on us when we did the   same to him.
Look around you and see the beautiful valentine God writes to you every day. He says I Love you today and nothing you do will ever change that.
I hope whether you have someone special to spend the day with or not.
You will come to know what today is really about. It's more than just one man who was marterd.
Lets remember Who he would not let go of even in the face of certain death.
Even with our imperfect understanding we can see that he learned to love and give from love Himself. And What a glorious love that is.
Happy love day to all my dearest followers.

photos via pinterest

Coffee Dreams

       

 There seems to be no point in coffee, unless drunk hot. The flavors are more full rich and who doesn't like a steaming mug as opposed to a cup sweating with icy condensation. Well maybe unless in summer that's the exception. But in an eastern cold autumn, hot coffee in the only thing that makes sense, to cold hands and noses nipped by jack frost. To the insides its that something that can melt away the layers of ice and make warmth rapidly spread throughout the body. I don't know why I'm daydreaming about coffee but that's what the onset of winter will do to a girl. Now my mind is thinking about those coffee houses the ones with the wide mugs that steaming coffee is poured into and frothy milk placed just right to make some design that will marvel and amaze your frozen mind. The kind that with one sip you will want to personally hug whom ever was responsible for making such a cup of perfection. A place where I can find some corner to recede into oblivion where the only thing that matters is the returning warmth to the tips of my fingers. A place where I can remove that massive scarf that only moments ago I was blessing. And watch the snow flurries fall silently, without feeling a shiver down the back of my mind. Well I could that is if I'm no too lost in that beautiful cup.
© Rachel Hope 2012. 
I just posted this on my Tumblr page, As I said I don't know why I'm day dreaming about coffee but I am. Its a strange thing... I hope your having a lovely week !

 Pictures via The Victorian tea

Sentiments on Love and the mystery behind it.

Theres something about romance that draws on ones fancy. A story about Two heats that come together, ones that were destined to be together, from the beginnings of time. I have sworn so many times that I would never write romance, hoping that I would go against the flow and do something uncommon. But I have come to learn that romance, is all around us, it surrounds in the world that we live in. Look in the bible, its laced with the best romance ever told, between our Savior and his bride the Church, his gentile wooing of her and the sacrifice that he would make for her.
I would say that; that is one of the most beautiful stories I have ever heard, full of chivalry,  heroism and  the ultimate expression of love.
I used to be bothered that romance was something widely sung, talked, and or played out in every part of society. Used to being the operative word, because I came to realize (I'm not sure when this happened, perhaps it was from writing romance and trying to understand it) That all of humanity is looking for that original romance, the one that calls to there hearts, the one that keeps them "on the market"the one that doesn't let them sleep at night. Its the lost romance between the creator and His creation. We as humans are hoping to find that perfect romance, we search for it, sing about it and the heartbreak that comes from the disappointment that other humans bring. And I must say these expressions of that search are entertaining, but mostly heart breaking.
Just imagine, if we as imperfect humans yearn to be loved in the most perfect way, how much more in the Creators infinite yearning, to have his creations let Him love them in the way that He wishes. At his heart is the most beautiful expression of love, He created it and He is in every way pure love, Why don't we let Him love us. Because when we do, we are loving him in return, in the way that He deserves. I have learned to embrace the romance that resides in every leaf every soft breeze every sound of laughter. Because our wonderful God placed these tiny sketches of the "real thing" in our world to call to our hearts, like one of the softest love songs that plays at our heart strings.
Am I against romance ? Certainly Not! no I have learned that its the common thread that connects to our hearts in a way that we don't even understand. So I shall continue to write it, I say continue because against all my better judgment, and preconceived ideas, I enjoy writing romance. And I hope that we as writers remember to convey, the Love of Christ in evert story, even more so than the human expression of love. I do hope I remember this one, and with my Saviors help, I do need it because I have never been in love, I shall come through the writing process with a story that captivates the hearts of my fellow humans in a deeper way.
What are your thoughts about romance as a genera ?