Be my Valentine? – 13th – 19th February 2023

Does Valentine’s day make you groan, giggle or glow? To be honest it’s mainly full of slightly uncomfortable or awkward memories for me. The times I have loved have been cards my husband and I have drawn for each other and, now we have children, going out for a meal all together. Valentine’s Day has murky origins. It is said a Roman Emperor executed two guys named Valentine on February 14th (different years) and that one of them may have sent a love letter to a young woman before his execution signed ‘From Your Valentine’ – big emphasis on the may. There is also a Roman fertility festival called Lupercalia which was celebrated at this time and perhaps St Valentine was given the day and some associations with the fun stuff that ensures fertility to divert that energy into a more Christian current. 

Despite all the above not providing a jot of evidence for festivities celebrating love here in Northern Europe the skies continue to invite us into a celebration of partnership in its many guises. We are in Vali’s Hall (no association with Valentine although it’s tempting to find it). His partnership with destiny is written large in the sky before his very birth as he is fated to carry out a slaying his father Odin cannot undertake on his own behalf. Note there is a theme of execution here; I do sometimes wonder if Valentine’s Day ends just as many relationships as it starts. Watch this week’s Middle Earth Readings for more on partnership and how to weave it into your spiritual practice this week.

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