My earliest memory of Valentine’s Day was in the fifth grade. I remember watching the “it” girls get showered with roses, candy, balloons, and teddy bears, hoping it would be me one day.

In the original festival, men would sacrifice a goat and a dog, then run around naked or nearly naked, hitting women with the animals' hides.

Each Valentine's Day, millions of Americans gift their partners or loved ones with flowers, cards or candy as a token of ...