All you need is love

Dydd Santes Dwynwen Hapus! Or Happy St Dwynwen’s Day from the Land of Song !

Here in Wales, we celebrate St Dwynwen, the Welsh equivalent of St Valentine, on January 25 so have two love dates in our calendars.

Dwynwen lived during the 5^th century and was one of Welsh King Brychan’s 24 daughters. Hers was a tragic story featuring a lover turned into a block of ice, an amnesic potion and a nunnery as a final destination. Not the most satisfying of endings, but nor was Valentine’s, a priest after whom Valentine’s Day is said to have been named, who was martyred by one of the many Roman emperors.

There’s nothing very lovey-dovey about the origins of the day either since it appears to have evolved from the pagan Roman festival of Lupercalia dedicated to the god of agriculture and Rome’s founders Romulus and Remus who were raised by a she-wolf. It was a feast of debauchery where Roman priests ran naked through the streets slapping women with blood soaked hides of sacrificed animals in a ritual they believed promoted fertility!

The festival was outlawed by a Pope in the late 5^th century who supposedly replaced the pagan holiday with the celebration of St Valentine on February 14.

Fast forward to medieval times when the poet Chaucer and then Shakespeare began the romantic traditions of penning and sending love letters. The custom grew in Victorian times when lovers went to great lengths to make personalised cards to send anonymously through the post. Victorian men wooed their lovers with flowers and Richard Cadbury, eponymous founder of that great chocolate brand, created the first heart shaped box of chocs.

And now the day has become one of the most commercialised in the retail calendar whether you are sending a card, bouquet of flowers or a personalised gift, the choice is endless with promotions beginning as early as the first week of January.

Today’s Valentine’s gifts range from bottles of fizz and personalised jewellery, to edible gifts such as chocs and fruit bouquets – the choice is endless. Be My Bear aren’t to be outdone either when it comes to Valentine’s Day gifts. Our Message Bear which comes with a 20 second recordable voice box for you to record your very own message for a loved one. It’s so easy to use - just record what you want to say and if it’s not quire right erase and start again. Once you are happy with the message you have recorded, place the voice recorder inside your bear or animal for a gift to last a lifetime. The recipient can change the battery so he or she will never lose the message if even they lose the love!

If furry and cuddly animals aren’t your thing the voice box can be used as a stand-alone gift. Pop it inside a box of chocolates or biscuits or add to a padded heart or card, it has so many applications.

So whether you are a follower of St Dwynwen or St Valentine or both, we hope your story has a happier outcome than theirs. Embrace the day and each other!

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