I am thoroughly convinced that the "religious explanation" of "12 Days" is incorrect. However, the story is amazingly widespread - I've found it on the Internet, in print, and even in a Christmas sermon. It has come to the point where I sometimes find it dangerous to question the veracity of the story. At a song circle a week ago, somebody read the "12 Days" explanation from a newspaper article, and I dared to question it. Three highly indignant women took every opportunity to attack me for the rest of the evening. They even refused to sing along when I suggested we sing "Blow Ye Winds in the Morning" - because they found it offensive to whales. I'm lucky to have escaped that song circle alive.

Pious people can get downright mean when the object of their piety is questioned. I suppose we all have mythologies we hold sacred.
-Joe Offer-