The_Rambler_1977-02-14

              '•Y/SlRJALS DEPT.
Fiidii ky ynr Miiditiry tctiiity Fn is tfistribitii by thi S.fi.i
Volume 47
Number 10
February 14, 1977
Greatest Stories Live: St. Valentine's Day
Although celebrated around the world as well as
here in the U.S., few people know the true origin of
Valentine's Day. The name of the holiday comes
from the feast day of two Christian martyrs both of
which were named Valentine. But the customs of
Valentine's Day have nothing to do with the lives of
those Saints. As far as we know, the customs
probably originated in Ancient Rome. There, they
celebrated a festival called Lupercalia, a lovers
festival for young people. Young men and women
chose partners for the festival by drawing names
which were placed in a box. Then the partners would
show their affection by exchanging gifts. Many
times, the couples would continue seeing each other
and end up marrying.
During the spreading of Christianity, the church
tried to change the pagan festival into a Christian
''A POEM OF
MY LOVE '
Sun shines brightly upon the
chrystal blue water.
Cool air blows through my hair.
Inhaling the sense of contentment
I think of my lover.
His eyes are like the water
dear and comforting.
His hair as illuminating
as the sun
His words have a rhyme tic roll
as the ocean waters roll upon the shore
lasting and so gentle.
The spirit of the man is that of
the seagull-
Searching. reaching out and
finally
grasping.
Grasp on to me my dear freind.
We shall flow together
As the bays turn to oceans.
one so the Lupercalia festival originally celebrated
on February 15th was now changed to St. Valentine's
Day celebrated on February 14th. Beliefs about
Valentin's Day include an Old English superstitution
warning that it is bad luck to bring snow drops into
the house before Valentine's Day if unmarried.
Single girls tried to learn the identity of their
future husbands by using various methods.
Sometimes a girl would write the names of her
boyfriend on a piece of paper and then would stick
them into a peice of clay. She then dropped the clay
into water and the first one to use to the top would
contain the name of her husband. Some girls would
pin five bay leaves to their pillows and believed that
they would see their future husband in their dreams.
In Derbyshire England, young woman circled the
church 12 times at midnight and recited a chant, after
which their true Valentine was supposed to appear.
In the United States Valentine's Day became
popular in the I880's during the Civil War. Many
Valentines of that period were hand painted. Today
in the U.S., children have parties, people send cards
without signing their names, men sometimes send
candy, and flowers, and people place personals in the
local paper.
SHE
"A SMILE
THAT CHANGED
MY LIFE"
/ was staring into an empty life:
meanings and values were unclear to me then.
' What was it all for^, J asked myself.
A knight in shining armor rode into my life.
His strenght was visible in his tender eyes.
He smiled so compassionately that
tears flooded my heart.
His eyes reflected the mood I feh.
Then in a flash they changed to a serene blue.
He
gave me his hand
and pulled
me
up from my turmoil.
MAYBE
Maybe words are not real:
Actions won't explain.
Reasons for why I feel
this way are not plain.
Maybe Fm so wrong:
For feeling this blue.
But to act so strong,
would, could not be true.
Maybe I feel this low,
about you and me.
What it is, who would know?
Of that, I can't see.
Maybe it will all pass.
So / might be free-
That it might never last
is n'y thought, maybe.
•E. Reilly
by Robert Semelman
She had caught my eye as I
saw her walk down the hall
with her bright dress that
accentuated her features. The
girl's mouth always wore a
toothy smile which shone like
flne procelain. Eyes sparkled
like orbs of sparkling lights.
Her hair was as blond as sun
drenched straw which were set,
in long rows ready to be
bundled. Looking at her, I
wondered why she always
smiled. Perhaps she was from
another world whose in-habitants
were always positive.
Not a cloud of gloom seemed to
hover over her as she walked
past.
e came into a room, her
presence brightened it with her
optimistic personality. I found
that this feeling sort of rubbed
off on people close by, for my
personal outlook on life'
derastically changed when I
passed her. When this "mood
mistress" departed, her absence
was felt almost immediately.
My pessimism soon engulfed
me. It buried me up to and over
my head to suffocate me in it.
Due to a scheduling problem
with our printer we were unable
to bring you a regular
RAMBLER issue. We did
realize, however that nuny of
our readers were looking
forward to our publicized
Valentines Day issue and felt it
would be unfair to disappoint
them. So here it is on time and
full of love.
Happy Valentine's Day
The RAMBLER Staff