Happy Valentine.
There was a time we liked to cook..we gathered food ...we grew it
We prepared it and we ate
..in groups we shared our food ....
There was not fame or money in it..
There was a time when we sang songs because we liked to sing
O f happiness or grief to tell of life and tell our story
There was a time we liked to sing.
There was no fame or money in it.
There was a time we loved making music
We tapped and banged and hollowed out a stick to blow upon
We made a bow and string and strummed on it
There was a time when we made music
There was no fame or money in it.
There was a time we liked to dance
We sang our song played music and we danced
Because we liked to dance
There was no fame or money in it.
There was a time we liked to paint
We liked to paint and carve
We like to paint and carve and weave and dye our clothes
We liked to make our art cause we enjoyed it
There was no fame or money in it
There was a time we liked to love.. we loved to love
We loved and loved and then we made our babies
We liked to love
There was no fame or money in it.
There was a time this was a sacred month.
February...the month the birds begin to sing again
...and think of making nest
And at this time came festivals
We sang we danced we drank
In celebration of fecundity
Of trees that bore us fruit
And woman who gave us child...
February... the month of Festival and Ritual...Fertility
We danced and danced and sang and sang
And each man hoped that all the Gods would grant him woman
Whose womb would grow his child.
There was no money in it.
Until the church produced it’s Valentines
And took charge of fertility
The music and the dance
And pushed the dancing woman out of sight
And let her sing no more the songs that she had written
The church would chose the words
Would own the festival
And there would be money in it...
Kitch cards. Unscented Roses. Sordid chocolates.
Kristine Byrne February 2012