So first off, after all that fasting for St Agnes’ Day, did I dream of my future husband last night? And the answer is… I’m not sure. I did all the chanting three times at midnight and lying on my left side, but I slept really badly due to snot, so I never quite got into a memorable dream state. However, right at the end of the night, I did dream of two men, but in my dream I remember thinking to myself that instead of seeing two men I was in fact seeing ‘both sides of the same coin’. But can I remember what they looked like? Can I buggery. So there you go. Don’t go buying a hat just yet.
Right, onto St Vincent’s Day. St Vincent was the patron saint of many things, but most deliciously of champagne. But as I haven’t got any champagne, or a pyramid of brioche, or a baton, I thought I would observe the other thing St Vincent’s Day is famous for, weather predictions. And more precisely this one:
Remember on St Vincent’s Day
If that the sun his beams display,
Be sure to mark his transient beam
Which through the window sheds a gleam;
For ’tis a token bright and clear,
Of prosperous weather all the year.
Or this one:
If on St Vincent Day the sky is clear,
More wine than water will crown the year.
Or this one:
If St Vincent’s has sunshine
One hopes much rye and wine
All of which basically amounts to if the sun comes out today, the rest of the year will have lovely weather and therefore a good harvest.
Shame the sun didn’t come out today then (or at least where I was. You?).
But all is not lost, because while the weather prediction on 12 January came true, the one on 13 January didn’t. And at least we’re lucky in that the forecast for Saturday is looking good, or at least not looking foggy, for fog on the Feast of the Conversion of St Paul is said to warn of pestilence coming. And I for one, after nearly a week of having a cold, do not want the pestilence as well.
Although, having said that, I have found rather a good recipe to cure the plague if anyone is up for another experiment?
Anyone…?
Resources
Cooper, Q. and Sullivan, P. (1994) Maypoles, Martyrs & Mayhem: 366 Days of British Myths, Customs & Eccentricities, London, Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Roud, S. (2006) The English Year: A Month-By-Month Guide To The Nation’s Customs and Festivals, From May Day to Mischief Night, London, Penguin Books
https://www.champagne-bollinger.com/en/GB/stories/stories/st-vincent-s-feast-day
