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NauenThen

Love

A friend was recently in Wales, which reminded me to look at the wedding shelf above our kitchen table. My Auntie May (1902-92) gave us the Welsh love spoon on the left, & someone else gave us the less ornate one. Grapes and leaves mean "love will grow."

Traditionally, the love spoon was made from a single piece of wood by a young man to show both his intentions and his practical skills. The earliest surviving example is from the late 17th century, although they are probably much older. That one can be seen at St Fagans, an open-air museum of Welsh life (Urdd Gobaith Cymru) in Cardiff. It might be my favorite museum in the world.

I don't know why people go to England and Scotland but not Wales. I don't know why people go to the Rockies but not the Black Hills.




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