Valentine’s Day is believed to be the time when birds find their mates. But folklore suggests that the birds can also help young ladies find a mate. On Valentine’s Day, it is said, if a young woman sees a certain kind of bird, it foretells the sort of marriage she will have.
Seeing a robin predicts that the future husband will be a sailor. A blackbird can presage marriage to a preacher. The bluebird, alas, prophesies marrying a poor man. The crossbill, which lives in the pines, is the bird to see for a marriage with a lot of quarreling.
A common little sparrow bodes well for a modest little home, filled with love. The goldfinch, as one could imagine, forecasts marriage to a millionaire. Though his winter plumage lacks the bright yellow of summer, seeing the goldfinch is still worth a million.
For young women who have seen a crossbill or a bluebird, or perhaps saw a robin and aren’t sure they want to marry a sailor, we believe there should be a second chance. So we suggest they should take a mulligan as the golfers do and have another look. On the second try they might even see the ultimate sign of a good marriage and a happy life — a flock of doves.