'Valentine's' Day ❤️ 14th February
- Simon O'Donovan
- Feb 7
- 8 min read
“You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,
Love like you'll never be hurt,
Sing like there's nobody listening,
And live like it's heaven on earth.”
― William W. Purkey
INTRODUCTION
Before embarking on this week's CST activities, a reminder to know your individual group members well. Their lives, loves and losses, as far as is possible and appropriate to ask in any biographical assessment. Adjust the questions and discussion points below accordingly. Start this week's activities with a glass of sparking wine, strawberries and chocolates, to get everyone in the mood for discussing 'Valentines Day'.
You could also pass around a bowl of ‘Love Heart’ sweets and ask everyone to read out their message. You could then give everyone a red rose, after checking for thorns, and ask people to comment on the smell and feel of their flower and the memories it evokes.
Discussion questions could focus on:
- Members' first kisses?
- Do people believe in love at first sight?
- Has anyone ever been on a blind date? - What were female member’s bridal gowns like? - What colour boquets and kind of flowers did members have? - What about the first dance, can people remember their song? - Where did people go on honeymoon?
- What were members' most recent anniversaries?
- How did they celebrate?
- Look at members' wedding rings
IDIOMS & PROVERBS
Next, ask members to complete (some of) these idioms (as a group 'shout out') ...
Have a change of - HEART A heart of - GOLD Having a heart-to-heart - TALK My heart skipped a - BEAT Home is where the - HEART - is Love at first - SIGHT A labour of - LOVE From the bottom of my - HEART No love - LOST Puppy - LOVE Blind - DATE Fall head over - HEELS - in love All you need is - LOVE All's fair in love and - WAR Cupboard - LOVE Love - RAT For the love of - PETE It's a love / hate - RELATIONSHIP Love is - BLIND No love lost - BETWEEN - them Love conquers - ALL Not for love nor - MONEY Tough - LOVE Love is a - DRUG Love is a many - SPLENDOURED THING First - LOVE Out of sight out of - MIND Absence makes the heart grow - FONDER The way to a man's heart is through his - STOMACH Beauty is only skin - DEEP Actions speak louder than - WORDS My love is like a red red - ROSE All good things must come to - AN END Better to have loved and lost than never - LOVED AT ALL
MUSIC & PICTURE QUIZ
We then moved on to some questions about Valentines Day, to get the discussion going.
ROUND 1. Be My Valentine
 | What date is Valentine's Day? As well as being patron saint of lovers, which other two groups of people does he 'look after'? a. people with epilepsy and beekeepers b. people with heart disease and florists c. people with skin problems and dentists |
 | Who is said to be the Welsh Saint Valentine (Welsh patron saint of lovers)? What does the Welsh word 'cwtch' mean? |
 | What does the word Valentine mean? |
 | What is the original meaning of an 'X' on a Valentine's card? |
 | Who is the Greek goddess of love? |
 | Who is the Roman goddess of love? Who painted this painting? Or ... Which girl group had a hit single with this name in 1986? |
 | Where is the statue of Cupid in London? |
 | Which famous building in America lights up a red heart each St Valentine's Day? |
 | True or false: Swans mate for life? |
 | Plus or minus 100 years, what date was the first recorded Valentine Card sent? |
SONG BREAK - 'Get Me To The Church On Time', 'My Fair Lady' - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diWNbCdvcz4
ROUND 2. Symbols Of Love
 | Finish this well known phrase, "She loves me, ......"? How do you make a daisy chain? |
 | If you’re quick to show your feelings, where do you wear your heart? |
 | If a red rose is a symbol of love, what are Rosemary and White Lily emblems for? |
 | Roses are red, violets are blue... What comes next traditionally? |
 | What does S.W.A.L.K. mean on a Valentine's Day card envelope? |
 | Nowadays we give chocolates, cards or flowers on Valentine's Day. What was given as a gift before these modern day traditions? |
 | Traditionally, on what day can a woman propose to a man? If you are engaged to a person, how do you refer to them? |
 | Complete this phrase ... "Something old, something new ..."?
|
 | What do you call it when ... - Someone elopes to get married? - Someone gets married because they are pregnant? - Someone gets married to a person of their parent's choice? |
 | What are the anniversary symbols or gifts for 1 year married, 10 years, 25 years, 30 years, 50 years and 60 years? |
SONG BREAK - 'Flash, Bang, Wollop', Tommy Steele - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCP0-XfbyRU
ROUND 3. History
 | Who was the legendary Benedictine monk who invented champagne in 1679? |
 | What was the name of the renowned 18th Century womaniser (some say he was a great lover) who lived in Venice? (He liked to take part in masked balls!)
|
 | In Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet', what are the lovers' surnames?
|
 | Name the leader of the Chicago gangsters responsible for the St Valentine's Day Massacre in 1929? |
 | How many times did Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor marry?
|
 | What was the name of the 1989 film starring Pauline Collins where she used to talk to the wall and then went to Greece on holiday and ended up staying? |
 | Who was the host of the ITV dating show 'Blind Date'?
|
 | Which Channel 4 TV series does Fred Sirieux host (he is the maitre d)?
|
 | What year did Same Sex Marriage become legal in the UK? |
Name the Disney love story?
SONG. 'Love And Marriage', Frank Sinatra - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srKQvgI4RkQ
ROUND 4. Best Ever Love Movies
 | "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn!" Name the 1940 movie? Name the characters & actors? |
 | “Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine.” Name the 1942 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "Winter must be cold for those with no warm memories... we've already missed the spring!" Name the 1957 movie?
Name the actors?
|
 | “You call yourself a free spirit a wild thing and you're terrified somebody's gonna stick you in a cage." Name the 1961 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "Love means never having to say you're sorry." Name the 1971 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "You'll never find anyone as good for you as I am, to believe in you as much as I do or love you as much!" Name the 1973 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "Nobody puts Baby in the corner." Name the 1987 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "Look, Alex, I like you. And maybe if I wasn't with somebody else, I'd be with you. But I am."
Name the 1987 movie? Name the actors? T or F. The phrase "Bunny Boiler" came from this movie? |
 | "I appreciate this whole seduction thing you've got going on here, but let me give you a tip: I'm a sure thing." Name the 1989 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "I'll have what she's having!" Name then1989 movie? Name the actors?
|
 | "The love inside, you take it with you." Name the 1990 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "For the good of all men and the love of one woman, he fought to uphold justice by breaking the law." Name the 1991 movie? Name the actor? |
 | "Never let her out of your sight. Never let your guard down. Never fall in love." Name the 1992 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "I knew it the first time I saw her. It was like coming home, only to no home I'd ever known. I was just taking her hand to help her out of a car and I knew. It was...magic." Name the 1993 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "I am, as ever, in bewildered awe of anyone who can make this kind of commitment." Name the 1994 movie? Name the actors? |
 | “Promise me you'll survive. That you won't give up, no matter what happens." Name the 1997 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "I'm also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her." Name the 1999 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "I wish I knew how to quit you!" Name the 2005 movie? Name the actors? |
 | “It is a truth universally acknowledged that when one part of your life starts going okay, another falls spectacularly to pieces.” Name the 2001 movie? Name the actors? |
 | "To me, you are perfect." Name the 2003 movie? Name the actors? |
SOME OTHER GREAT LOVE SONGS FOR SINGALONGS
Or, you could play this round as a 'Name That Tune'. Play a few bars and ask members to name the song and the artist/group.
Spotify playlist ...
Members should all be feeling the love after that playlist. Together, make a heart shape with our fingers and thumbs, close our eyes and blow a kiss to our special someone.
PRACTICAL ACTIVITIES
Make collage Valentines Day Cards. Print off old Victorian cards from the internet and cut them up to reuse and refashion them.
Make origami hearts. Instruction video here https://youtu.be/CN4oPm9bCWE
Make origami roses. Instruction video here https://youtu.be/jm_4hFPFAOU
ANSWERS 
1. 14TH FEBRUARY / EPILEPTICS & BEEKEEPERS
2. SANTE DWYNWEN (25th January is her feast day) / A CUDDLE OR A HUG
3. ROMANTIC LOVE or SWEETHEART
4. Illiterate people would sign their name with a cross and kiss it for SINCERITY. Today people sign with an X to maintain ANONYMITY.
5. APHRODITE
6. VENUS / SANDRO BOTTICELLI / 'BANANARAMA'
7. PICADILLY CIRCUS
8. EMPIRE STATE BUILDING IN NEW YORK
9. TRUE (And they make a heart shape when their necks intertwine. Aw!)
10. 1415
11. SHE LOVES ME NOT (usually said whilst picking the petals off a daisy, one at a time)
12. ON YOUR SLEEVE
13. REMEMBRANCE & PURITY
14. ... SUGAR IS SWEET, AND SO ARE YOU
15. SEALED WITH A LOVING KISS
16. A PAIR OF GLOVES, indicating you wanted the person's hand in marriage
17. LEAP YEAR'S DAY - FEBRUARY 29TH / Your BETROTHED or more commonly FIANCE
18. SOMETHING BORROWED, SOMETHING BLUE
19. QUICKIE, SHOTGUN, ARRANGED
20. PAPER, TIN, SILVER, PEARL, GOLD & DIAMOND
21. DOM PERIGNON
22. GIACOMO CASANOVA
23. CAPULET & MONTAGUE
24. AL CAPONE
25. SHE MARRIED HIM TWICE AND HAD SIX OTHER HUSBANDS
26. CILLA BLACK (Paul O'Grady hosted it most recently)
27. 'FIRST DATES'
28. 'SHIRLEY VALENTINE'
29. 10 DECEMBER 2014
30. CINDERELLA, ALADDIN, SLEEPING BEAUTY
BEAUTY & THE BEAST, LADY & THE TRAMP, LION KING
31. 'GONE WITH THE WIND' / CLARK GABLE & VIVIEN LEIGH
32. 'CASABLANCA' / HUMPHRY BOGART & INGRID BERGMAN
33. 'AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER' / CARY GRANT & DEBORAH KERR
34. 'BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S' / AUDREY HEPBURN & GEORGE PEPPARD
35. 'LOVE STORY' / ALLIE MACGRAW & RYAN O'NEAL
36. 'THE WAY WE WERE' / BARBRA STREISAND & ROBERT REDFORD
37. 'DIRTY DANCING' / JENNIFER GREY & PATRICK SWAYZE
38. 'FATAL ATTRACTION' / GLENN CLOSE & MICHAEL DOUGLAS
39. 'PRETTY WOMAN' / JULIA ROBERTS & RICHARD GERE
40. 'WHEN HARRY MET SALLY' / MEG RYAN & BILLY CRYSTAL
41. 'GHOST' / PATRICK SWAYZE & DEMI MOORE
42. 'ROBIN PRINCE OF THIEVES' / KEVIN COSTNER
43. 'BODYGUARD' / KEVIN COSTNER & WHITNEY HOUSTON
44. 'SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE' / TOM HANKS & MEG RYAN
45. 'FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL' / HUGH GRANT & ANDIE MACDOWELL
46. 'TITANIC' / LEONARDO DICAPRIO & KATE WINSLET
47. 'NOTTING HILL' / JULIA ROBERTS & HUGH GRANT
48. 'BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN' / JAKE GYLLENHAAL & HEATH LEDGER
49. 'BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY' / RENE ZELLWEGER & COLIN FIRTHN
50. 'LOVE ACTUALLY' / HUGH GRANT & MARTINE MCCUCTHEON
Thanks for this, I’ll be using it this Thursday for our group and I’ll let you know how it goes 👍