Happy Valentine's Day

Myths and Other Trivia

You’ve gotta believe: People love to believe in myths, superstitions, and the like. Don’t believe me? Ask yourself why you take pains to not break a mirror even though you “know” the seven years of bad luck thing is balderdash. Still not convinced? Walk into any bowling alley and watch the contorted position a bowler ends up after a strike. He will try to mimic that position every time he rolls the ball in an effort to recreate the strike. Ditto golfers, coaches and gamblers of any ilk. Despite the psychology truth that “correlation does not necessarily imply causation,” people find it easier to believe than to seek.

St. Valentine’s Day is for the birds: One myth held that if a young girl saw a particular bird on St. Valentine’s Day she would marry a particular type of man. Blackbird = man of the cloth, bluebird = man of humor, dove = man of kindness, goldfinch = man of wealth, robin = man of the sea, sparrow = man of the country and if she saw a woodpecker on Valentine’s Day she’d remain a spinster.

Top 10 gifts for her on Valentine’s Day: #10, a personally cut CD with her favorite music, #9, tickets for a weekend getaway to either her favorite spot or a romantic place you want to explore (hint: DO NOT take her to the romantic place you and your ex enjoyed so much). # 8, lingerie. Be sure to tell her that she looks better than the models at Victoria’s Secret. #7, dinner out at an upscale restaurant and make it a very special night #6 by getting there in a limo. #5 Chocolates in a heart shaped box, #4, a huge bouquet of roses complete with baby’s breath and greens. #3, jewelry, depending on your budget this could be a heart-shaped locket or lots of diamonds. #2 is poetry. If your ability is limited to “Roses are red, violets are blue,” or if you can only rhyme love to above, perhaps a fine poem from a commercial source would be your choice. And the #1 gift for a most special Valentine’s Day is the renewal of your vows. Take her to a chapel. If I may use the line that you used when wooing her, “Trust me.”

Nothing says “I love you” like a… dolphin? For as long as there’s been romance there have been symbols of love. Today we are most familiar with flowers, especially roses, hearts, lovebirds, doves, and of course Cupid and his arrows. Scholars tell us that Valentine’s and romantic symbols over the years have included pendants, crystals, butterflies, and even dolphins.

Cupid is the son of Venus, the Goddess of Love. According to mythology whomever his arrow hits will fall in love with the first person s/he sees. The love knot concept was born in the Muslim culture where women would send a message of love to a man by tying the knots of a carpet in a certain way and sending him the carpet. It is believed that on Valentine’s Day love birds and doves found their mates. And of course, the heart is the very center of life. Hence, the symbol of cupid’s arrow piercing the heart has come to represent true love.

A little blogging music Maestro…. Today there can be no better selection than John Paul Young’s, “Love is in the Air.”

Dr. Forgot