|  On
this Valentine's Day, we celebrate by telling a secret wive's tale about birds
and love. Read below to find out what type of man you might marry!
 Birds
and Love - An Old Wive's Tale
 Europeans
believe that Feb. 14th is the day when birds begin to choose their mates. Chaucer,
Shakespeare, and numerous other poets mention this tradition in their work. In
their versions of the story, it is believed that a young girl will be able to
tell what type of man she will marry based upon the first bird that she sees on
Valentine's Day. The birds, and their associations, include:
| What type of
man will you marry? | | Blackbird | a
clergyman or priest | | Robin Redbreast | a
sailor or nautical man | | Goldfinch (or
any yellow bird) | a rich man | | Sparrow | a
farmer or country gentleman | | Bluebird | a
happy man | | Crossbill | an
argumentative man | | Dove | a
good man | | Woodpecker | no
husband | 
To coin another Wive's Tale, we take this folklore with a grain
of salt ... as a little secret that's just for fun! If you need help identifying
these birds, a great on -line resources is http://birdsource.cornell.edu/gbbc/gbbcguideframes.html. |
