People said “Love can move mountains,” and we’ve witnessed it many times in our lives. Love itself doesn’t have a definite form as to how emotions and feelings are. That’s why humans take it into their hands to convert this formless word into tangible things and actions and even dedicate days to celebrate it. In this 6th Fall Series blog, we’ve prepared “5 Days of Love” to dive deeper into, not only considering the celebration but also the meaning, purpose, and history behind it.
INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP DAY
Puerto Pinasco, Paraguay witnessed the birth of the Friendship Day celebration in 1958 by Dr. Ramón Artemio Bracho. Though the idea was first invented by Joyce Hall, the founder of the Hallmark Card, as a strategy to sell his greeting cards. Almost half a century later, the United Nations named Winnie the Pooh as the world’s Ambassador of Friendship in 1998. Fast forward a few days, the UN, during the 2011 General Assembly, proclaimed July 30 as the official International Friendship Day.
As social creatures that rely on each other to survive and thrive, friendship has become the foundation of a safety blanket to protect people throughout their lives. The feeling of not being alone helps every individual to overcome a difficult situation, face a challenge, and break down walls of differences. It’s also the purest form of love, as it doesn’t need a special breakable label, such as lover, partner, co-worker, or even family. Two or more people could be separated for years without contact, yet still, see each other as friends and be able to rekindle and relive the moments spent together.
There are many ways of celebrating Friendship Day, but the most common activity is exchanging special bracelets, either handmade or purchased, and spending the whole day together.
VALENTINE’S DAY
Celebrated every February 14, the origin of Valentine’s Day wasn’t really about love. It was the day of St. Valentine's death hundreds and thousands of years ago. The history itself is quite a mystery, as there are three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus by the Catholic Church.
A Pagan festival called Lupercalia in Roman times, perhaps, is the turning point of when Valentine’s Day became a romantic celebration for lovers. Celebrated from February 13 to 15, it was a fertility festival where men sacrificed a goat and a dog, dedicated to the Roman God of Agriculture, Faunus, a.k.a the Roman Romulus and Remus founder.
It was also a common belief during the Middle Ages in France and England that birds would start their mating session on February 14, adding the romantic idea of the day. “For this was sent on Seynt Valentyne’s Day / When every foul cometh ther to choose his mate” were the lines from “Parliament of Fouls” written in 1375 by an English poet Geoffrey Chaucer. This is the first-ever record of St. Valentine’s Day as a romantic celebration.
Nowadays, people celebrate Valentine’s Day to show and appreciate their love for one another. Several schools and places even use this opportunity to throw a secret event where one can send a letter to their crush anonymously through the “cupid” of the event.
WHITE DAY
White Day might not be a common celebration outside Northern Asia. We might have heard it from Manga, Anime, or Korean Drama that we’ve watched. To understand this day, we must know first that in Northern Asia, Valentine’s Day is only for women to send gifts to their desired men, unlike in the Western, European, and other countries cultures. A month later, on March 14, the men would return the gesture by sending them chocolate or gifts, as well.
This started when Ishimura Manseido caught a letter by a woman in a magazine, complaining how unfair it is for women to get nothing in return after giving gifts to men on Valentine’s Day. With his company, he produced Marshmallows to be given to women a month after Valentine’s Day. The name “White Day” was originally from the color of the Marshmallow. The downside is, the gifts could be a bit vague as sometimes men give it out of obligation of receiving something on Valentine’s Day, and can’t always be seen as a feeling reciprocated.
MOTHER’S DAY
Mother’s Day is celebrated all around the world to honor mothers or motherly figures. While International Mother’s Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May, some of the countries have their dates for this special day, though the purpose and the motivation are still the same.
The history of this day could be traced back to the festivals held during ancient Greek and Roman times in honor of Rhea and Cybele, the mother goddesses. Hundreds of years later, a Christian festival called “Mothering Sunday” emerged that’s being celebrated in the United Kingdom and parts of Europe. Over time, this festival started to merge with American Mother’s Day in 1930 and 1940.
We can’t look back without mentioning Ann Reeves Jarvis. Back in the 19th century, she started to teach local women how to properly raise their children, forming “Mother’s Day Work Clubs.” Another important name we should mention is Julia Ward Howe, who wrote “Mother’s Day Proclamation” in 1870, as a call for mothers to unite and promote world peace.
Anna Jarvis, the daughter of Ann Reeves Jarvis, invented Mother’s Day to honor the mother’s sacrifices for their kids. She started a massive campaign to write letters for newspapers and politicians, stating that American holidays were all about male achievements, and urged the country to adopt a special day for women, especially mothers. That was the start of the precious Mother’s Day celebration.
FATHER’S DAY
Mother’s Day has become the inspiration for the birth of Father’s Day. Sonora Smart Dodd tried to establish Father’s Day in the honor of her Civil War veteran father, who had raised her and her five siblings all by himself after their mother passed away. The idea came after listening to a sermon on Mother’s Day and having the support of the local religious leaders. On June 19, 1910, Father’s Day was celebrated for the first time.
This day became official when President Richard Nixon declared Father’s Day as a national holiday every third Sunday of June. Back in the beginning, many men belittled this day and saw it as an insult to manliness with the flowers and gift-giving, and some even saw it as a gimmick. Some movements even tried to merge both Mother’s Day and Father’s Day into one Parents’ Day. However, when the Great Depression started and after World War II, Father’s Day became a way to honor American troops and support the war effort.
MOMENTS TO CHERISH
Days of Love exist to remind us to honor, cherish, and respect those who love us and those who we love. As life becomes busier every day, we are bound to forget to say or do a simple thing to show our love, especially when there are so many love languages out there. Though these Days of Love exist, it would be great if we could show our love every day to those who we cherish the most.
Out of the five days we’ve written about, which one is your favorite? Are there any precious moments about these days that you would love to share? Or are there any other Days of Love out there that we haven’t mentioned? Let us know!
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Written by: RAM
Edited by: Vera
Checked by: Aury