"But who was St. Patrick". St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland and is one of the most celebrated figures in modern Christianity. He was born to British aristocrats in the late fourth century; as in most aristocratic families at that time, Patrick as a later son was destined for the priesthood in order to bring tax incentives to his wealthy family. When he was 16 years old, he was captured by Irish raiders and held for six years. During this time, he became much more  spiritual as he was a lonely shepherd and required his faith to keep him strong.

After six years in County Mayo, Patrick heard a voice, that he believed to be God's, telling him to leave Ireland (as was indicated in his writings many years later). He walked hundreds of miles to the coast where he was able to escape to Britain. He was then ordained into the priesthood. He returned to Ireland as a priest, as the majority of Irish were at that time Pagan.

Patrick's time in captivity in Ireland had influenced him greatly and he brought many Irish customs to his parishioners. He began celebrating Easter with a large bonfire, following the Irish practice of honoring their gods with fire. And he created the Celtic Cross by superimposing the image of a sun onto the cross. St. Patrick died in 460 AD, and it is largely believed that he died on March 17th.

As time went on, St. Patrick's legend grew throughout the United Kingdom and particularly in Ireland. He became a figure that was larger than life, and it is believed he completed many near-impossible feats, including the driving out of the snakes and abolishment of the Druids at Tara. His influence on everything Christian in Ireland; however, is unmistakable. He can be singularly credited for spreading Christianity throughout all of Ireland.

The first St. Patrick's Day was celebrated in New York City on March 17, 1762. Irish soldiers serving in the British Army in the American Colonies marched through the streets of New York to celebrate their Irish homeland from which they had long since been away. St. Patrick's Cathedral stands in Manhattan as a majestic reminder of the history of Irish people in New York City.

As America grew, so did its Irish population. Throughout the late 18th century, Irish Aid societies like the Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick would hold annual parades celebrating St. Patrick's Day. These parades came to include bagpipes and drums, even though bagpipes were known more as a Scottish custom than Irish.

When the Great Potato Famine hit in 1845, almost a million poor Irishmen streamed into America. Unlike their middle-class Protestant predecessors, these immigrants were Catholic and often uneducated. They found great difficulty in finding work, and were ridiculed in public and in the press as drunken monkeys with undecipherable accents. During this time, St. Patrick's Day celebrations grew decidedly more subdued.

By the early 20th century; however, the Irish population in the United States came to realize that they were large in number and thus had voting power. They began to court public opinion and became quite a political machine. When Harry S. Truman attended the New York City St. Patrick's Day parade in 1948, many Irish-Americans knew that they were at last an accepted part of American culture.

In Ireland itself, St. Patrick's Day was traditionally a religious holiday. In fact, until the mid-1970's, Irish law dictated that all pubs and bars had to be closed. By 1995; however, the Irish government began to use St. Patrick's Day as a driver for tourism as people all over the world clamored for all things Irish. St. Patrick's Festival in Dublin now draws over 1 million people in a multi-day celebration with parades, concerts, and fireworks.

In homes throughout the world, St. Patrick's Day is celebrated without alcoholic excess. Many Irish Catholic families celebrate with a day of prayers. Families cook the traditional Irish feast of corned beef (also known as Irish bacon), cabbage, and soda bread. Many of these families end the night with some coffee with Irish crème, and a chocolate pie or cake liberally saturated with mint flavoring. These traditions are passed from generation to generation, and are revered as much as if not more so than the alcoholic debauchery that is known so well.

This legend has been handed down for nearly two millennia. The Chinese people believe that the star, Vega, east of the Milky Way, is Zhi Nu, and that Altair, on the western side of the Milky Way is Niu Lang waiting for his wife.

The seventh day of the seventh lunar month is the only Chinese festival devoted to love in the lunar calendar. Chinese Valentine's Day traditions abound and this special day is celebrated differently depending on the Chinese province.

Some of the many traditions include Chinese girls preparing fruits, melons, and incense as offerings to Zhi Nu, the weaving maiden, praying to acquire high skills in needlecraft, as well as hoping to find satisfactory husbands.

Girls place sewing needles on water. If the needle doesn't sink, it's a sign of the girl's maturity and intelligence and she is ready and eligible to find a husband.

People in some Chinese provinces believe that decorating the horns of oxen with flowers will save them from catastrophe. Another tradition is for women to wash their hair to make it look fresh and shining.

On Chinese Valentine's Day, young lovers go to the temple of the Matchmaker and pray for their love and happiness, and their possible marriage in China.

In the evening, people sit outside to observe the stars. On this night, Vega and Altair are closer together than at any other time of year. Chinese grannies say that if you stand under a grapevine, you can probably overhear what Zhi Nu and Niu Lang are saying to one another.