What is May Day?
Growing up, I lived in a neighborhood at the end of a cul-de-sac. We lived in this cul -de- sac pretty much my entire life or from 2 years old on. One of the families I grew up with who eventually became family; would make little flower baskets. They weren’t huge and they weren’t meant to be they were precious and simple. Honestly, it was something I have yet to see anyone else do and it brought me so much joy. When I learned more about this day I realized how wonderfully my neighbor, Elizabeth, had captured its essence.
This is an example of what her little May Day bouquets looked like. They meant so much to me each year!
It was simple and beyond special. She would simply take some of the gorgeous flowers from her garden and then she would take a piece of decorative paper and fold it into a little vase. She would do this and ring the doorbell on the first day of may and then when we opened the door there would be a little bouquet of flowers. It was so sweet. This always meant so much to me that eventually I would research may day. I learned that there were a few things that started this tradition or holiday. It started as a holiday that memorialized worker's rights and all they achieved. Later, when the date moved to labor day it became a day about loving one another.
May day is all about celebrating connection to each other. It is a day focused on celebrating those we love without going crazy. It is a little holiday to remind us not to take on buying gifts or anything but to use the resources we have available to us. May day was first celebrated in the 1889 created to support workers in unions. One of the more important parts is that it honors the struggles of these labor workers in order to get what they deserve. It also honors things that they achieved like the working rights they fought for.
International federation of socialist groups and trade unions designated May 1 as a day in support of workers, in commemoration of an event that had happened about 5 years prior in Chicago called the Haymarket Riot. This day was created to honor those who fought for these rights but as a democratic country the president at the time, Grover Cleveland, felt uneasy about the origin of “worker’s day” being socialist so he created Labor day in September.
May day has been celebrated since the time of the ancient Greeks and Romans for the beginning of Spring and the spring festival. People would give each other flower bouquets and would wrap flowers in intricate ways and this has been carried on through the centuries.
When you hear someone talking of May Day or celebrating it they are most likely discussing the celebration of the return of Spring and the love of their friendship or relationship with you. I am fortunate to have been on the receiving end of this for years and I can’t wait to now start my own routine so I can bless those around me.
This is just a simple example of how to bring joy into what would otherwise be a regular day. I am so thankful to have learned this due to such an amazing family friend.
