Valentine’s Day. The day of love. The day every man goes out and spends money on his significant other. According to Daniel Wesley a writer for Visual Economics, the average man spends $168.74 on Valentine’s Day, and the average woman only spends $85.76. Come on girls step up your game.

According to Wesley, the average amount an individual spends on flowers on Valentine’s Day is $37.44, and the amount spent on candy is $21.47. Others spend their money on common gifts such as gift cards, jewelry and an evening out. Valentine’s Day cards are a must. According to Chen, Hallmark produced its first Valentine’s Day card in 1913. Approximately 1 billion cards are exchanged each year in the U.S. alone. According to CNN, 6 million people are expecting or planning a proposal on Valentine’s Day.

We go all out for this lovely occasion, but there are many theories about its origin. According to National Geographic, Valentine’s Day started in Roman times where men stripped naked and took goat or dog skinned whips and spanked young maidens in hope of increasing their fertility. According to “25 facts you didn’t know about Valentine’s Day” by David Pegg, in the middle ages men and women pulled names from a bowl to see who would be their Valentine. They would wear this name on their sleeve for a week. This is where the phrase “to wear your heart on your sleeve” came from. The most common Valentine’s Day tale takes place in third century A.D. Roman Emperor Claudius II, seeking to strengthen his army, forbade young men to marry. Valentine, it is said, went against the rule, performing marriages in secret. For his defiance, Valentine was executed in A.D. 270—on February 14.

So whether this holiday’s origin is based in fertility or love, it is one of the most celebrated  commercial holidays of all time.

There are other ways of celebrating this occasion student council is writing names on hearts and posting them all around the school.