My mother bought me a wooden spoon. It’s not the type of wooden spoon with which to measure and stir. Rather, it’s the kind of spoon that in Wales is hung on a wall!

Wales is a home of hand-carved, wooden lovespoons that are given as gifts on special occasions. Originally, in Wales and other parts of Europe where the tradition is equally long established, the lovespoon was a romantic gift. The carvings embody a variety of symbols with associated meanings. For example a keyhole says “my house is your house” while a heart would represent steadfast love. In Wales the Dragon is a national symbol, and as part of a lovespoon, a dragon represents protection, suggesting that interference might invoke a fiery response!

You can see my lovespoon in the header. You can see the bowl of the spoon and at the top of the spoon a cross. Generally, the cross symbolises faith. The handle connecting the bowl to the cross is of Celtic knot work. The latter symbolises everlasting love.

To me, this spoon has come to symbolise the object of faith. It hangs on an otherwise naked wall and provides the room’s main focus.

I see in it three parts. The bowl of the spoon represents an instrument of creation, a cosmic tool. The cross is a symbol for agency, the thing without which, nothing. The many strands of the Celtic knot join instrument and agent, eternally.

There are three parts, but there is only one spoon.