Happy May Day!
While I’m still a bit stunned that we’re now 5 months into 2013, I was really feeling ready to bid adieu to April and turn the calendar page. Bring on some fresh energy; bring on the creative mania I always experience in Spring; and most of all bring on the flowers!
The first of May has been celebrated for millennium. The ancient Romans celebrated Flora, their goddess of flowers; and most often the emphasis of May Day celebrations is springtime fertility rites. May Day/Beltane (or the night before) is celebrated as a cross-quarter holiday, half-way between the equinox and solstice. There’s often a component of dancing and bonfires. At one time all the household fires were doused and then relit from the community bonfire. There’s something about that image that really appeals to me. Starting anew after a good Spring cleaning and connecting with community through a shared resource.
I also love the much-later tradition of May Day baskets filled with flowers and left anonymously on neighbor’s doorsteps. I gathered my own basket (well vase to be perfectly accurate) of tulips today. But let’s imagine I’ve shared some of them with you as well. Merry May Day!
Tulips are such lovely symbols of Spring. I love them for all their contradictoriness. They are graceful and poised, and yet they can be riotously wanton as well. With cut blooms I love watching how the stems lean and dip into relaxed poses. Tulips are always a reminder to me of releasing all resistance to the natural blossoming and expansion of life. And doesn’t that sound like a perfect message to start this month?
I’ve been thinking particularly about the fire aspect of the holiday as well; I imagine in part because my recent hand reading brought up the fact that I have fire hands. And while that term has everything to do with hand shape, I’ve been considering the energetic possibilities as well. I haven’t used my hands for conscious hands-on energy work for a long while, and yet I know the invitation has arrived to think deeply about my hands of fire. No doubt I’ll be musing more about that here in the future. But for today I was serendipitously drawn to Jamie Ridler’s Wishcasting Wednesday. I haven’t played in many months, and yet today I couldn’t resist the prompt, on this first day of May, “What do you wish to make?”
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I wish to make my life a passionate expression of creative Wholeness forever sparking through my Soul.
So let me pose these questions to you as well: As you begin this new month of May, what are you wishing for? What intentions are you choosing? Or maybe you have a favorite Spring flower. Tell me about it and we’ll include it our virtual May basket for all to enjoy. Please let a comment; you know I love to hear from you.
I had to protect my baby plants outside because we had a frost this morning. May 1st officially at our house can have a 25% chance of a frost. Last night I zipped up my mini greenhouse and this morning I unzipped it so they could enjoy the sun we did have.
Beautiful post. I’m looking to include passionate appreciation of life this May.
Oh how lucky your delicate little newbie plants have a mini-greenhouse to start out in – and you to watch over them. No doubt they’ll thank you later with some extra vigorous blossoming. Hope you have a most wonderful May Sheila.
My celebration of Beltane involved a jumping out of my past and into my future and I have been thinking about what it all will mean intensely. Wishing for your own plans to come true!
What a lovely thing to celebrate! Best wishes to you, and I hope it all unfolds with perfect joy and grace.
Happy May Day to you, too! I used to love the tradition of making little baskets and leaving them on neighbors’ porches, ringing the doorbell, and running. Kids must not do it anymore, at least where I live.
Lovely intention…
LOL – well it’s my opinion that given where you live, it’s too hot to do anything that requires running! But I do agree, I think the delivery of May baskets is a pretty unusual thing these days. It’s a custom that would be lovely to revive, no?
Happy May day! As you wish for yourself, so I wish for you too!
Thank you Jen!
Aha! I love the spring blossoms…just not the pollen. I love May…just not my accompanying allergies. But despite the sneezing and endless supply of tissues, I love this new season. I grew up in south Florida. We went from winter to summer. My first ever glimpse of spring and her beautiful fragrant blossoms was not until I went away to college.
To this day I remember running from blossoming bush… to tree…to ground flowers and exclaiming with each sight. I always get a visual image of me dancing among the flowers as Maid Guinevere singing “It’s May, It’s May, the lusty month of May”! Ok…so I never looked like her…but I can dream!
My clock says I have two more minutes to enjoy the 1st of May!!
Oh how I love this image of you dancing amidst the flowers Ruth! And since I don’t actually “know” you, I’m totally envisioning you as a Maid Guinevere lookalike. 😉 I hope you have a lovely Spring filled with flowers and no allergies.
As you wish for yourself I also wish for you.
Thank you Tracey!
Thank you for the reminder about May Day baskets….I *love* that ritual.
This morning, we awoke to a fire in the hills; I live near the beach, so am not in danger, but the smoke clouded the sun in a beautiful, yet surreal looking way. So, today was fire and winds of change….the energy of which is explained in your wish.
Beautiful wish…As you wish for yourself, so I too wish for you as well.
I’m glad to hear you’re safe Joy. “Fire and winds of change” indeed! I appreciate you stopping by and adding your blessing to my wish – thank you.
Oh the thought of flowers blooming. I think this has been the longet winter of my life! We are slowly creeping into real spring time weather. Our flowers and trees are way behind, but I am sure they will transition this week with the warm weather coming.
My hands are ready for the much needed garden cleaning. I finally am at peace with the way they look. The look of hard working hands.
We’ve experienced an exceptionally long winter where I’m at also, which makes the Spring blossoming seem all the dearer to me. It’s so much fun when that first real week of warmth comes and everything starts to pop. I do hope you get to enjoy that this week!
And yay for finding peace with your hands!
Hi Deborah,
Happy May! It is now the 5th as I read this, but still a glorious appreciation of the day and all it brings. I am wishing to create a world where doing things like surprising our neighbors with May baskets are common. They ARE common. I wish to recognize and enhance the sharpness of this view.
I wish to be the change I wish to see in the world.
Happy May wishes all month long Amy! I love your vision, and I love the way you navigate in this world. You are indeed a powerful change-maker just by being who you are, and I celebrate you.
May is all about new beginnings with me! I just started massage therapy school and absolutely love it, I truly feel after all of this searching that I have finally found my calling. On top of that I have also just figured out where I want to hold my studio when I graduate! This IS cause for celebration. 🙂
Congratulations Tiffany – how wonderful! All that is indeed cause for celebration. Consider yourself the recipient of a virtual bouquet of May flowers. Yay!