|
|
|
|
Good evening, Kibitzers! As you may know, tomorrow will be Saint Valentine's Day, or just Valentine's Day. (If you have a partner, I hope I am not bringing you the first news of this, especially if you are in the East's giant snowstorm, or you'll be having quite a scramble tonight making a homemade card from whatever you find lying around the house, possibly in the dark.) But whether you think the tradition is charming or appalling, where did it come from? It turns out the day's origin is somewhat obscure, so we cannot know for sure who to blame, but a lovely little bit of old poetry is involved. Join me below the orange doily to hear more.
|
|
|
Saint Valentine was a third-century Christian priest, thought to have been martyred in Rome on February 14 in the year 269 CE. His feast day was set as February 14 by Pope Gelasius I in 496 CE, but even then, little was known about him. Some stories suggest that he was arrested for marrying Christian couples, or that he performed weddings for soldiers, who were not allowed to be married.
He remained obscure, and not particularly associated with romantic love, apparently until Geoffrey Chaucer got hold of him in 1382. Chaucer wrote a poem called the Parlement of Foules in honor of the engagement of teenaged King Richard II of England to similarly-teenaged Anne of Bohemia. The poem refers to St. Valentine's Day as a time when birds choose their mates. There is some dispute among scholars concerning what the hell Chaucer was talking about, because February 14 is still winter in England and not particularly a time when birds would be mating. Some suggest he meant one of several other Saint Valentines, Valentine of Genoa, whose feast was in May. Others maintain that the later change to the Gregorian calendar means Chaucer's February 14 was our February 23, and that is late enough for some birds to be getting frisky. (This seems an unlikely explanation to me, and I think you'll agree when you read his verse.)
In any case, Parlement of Foules ends with a lovely little piece sometimes called "The Birds' Roundel for St. Valentine", and it is this verse I'm thinking of fondly here in the snowstorm. Fondly and a little sadly, because summer's sun is not so softe these days either, but we can enjoy the image, which does not sound the tiniest bit like any date in February.
|
|
|
|
Now welcome, somer, with thy sonne softe,
That hast this wintres wedres overshake,
And driven away the longe nyghtes blake!
Saynt Valentyn, that art ful hy on-lofte,
Thus syngen smale foules for thy sake:
Now welcome, somer, with thy sonne softe,
That hast this wintres wedres overshake.
Wel han they cause for to gladen ofte,
Sith ech of hem recovered hath hys make;
Ful blissful mowe they synge when they wake:
Now welcome, somer, with thy sonne softe
That hast this wintres wedres overshake
And driven away the longe nyghtes blake!
|
wedres: storms
overshake: shaken off
nyghtes: nights
blake: black; dark
on-lofte: aloft, above
foules: birds
han: have
make: mate
mowe: may
synge: sing
|
|
Hear it read:
|
Are you feeling the love? Consider sharing a little bit! Lakota elders on the Cheyenne River Reservation in South Dakota are struggling to pay for enough propane to heat their homes in this brutal winter. The Okiciyap food pantry is collecting funds to help keep their heat on. Learn how you can help by donating money, or by sending blankets and warm clothing, in
weck's recent diary. Even $5 will buy someone a gallon of propane they do not have now.
|
|
|
|
Kitchen Table Kibitzing is a community series for those who wish to share part of the evening around a virtual kitchen table with kossacks who are caring and supportive of one another. So bring your stories, jokes, photos, funny pics, music, and interesting videos, as well as links—including quotations—to diaries, news stories, and books that you think this community would appreciate. Readers may notice that most who post diaries and comments in this series already know one another to some degree, but newcomers should not feel excluded. We welcome guests at our kitchen table, and hope to make some new friends as well.
|
|