It is a rather gray and dreary May Day. Not really the kind of weather that inspires little girls to make paper baskets, fill them with flowers and secretly leave them on the doorsteps of elderly neighborhood ladies. That's what my friends and I used to do on May Day. I recall May Days being warm and bright with plenty of sunshine to go around. After a long day in school we had plenty of energy to make our baskets, pick some flowers, and then run hide after we rang the doorbells of the homes where we placed the bouquets. What a great memory it is now all these years later. The gray haired ladies are long gone but I still recall the smiles on their wrinkled faces and how they scanned the bushes for some trace of where we might be hiding. Nowdays we discourage our children from talking to stangers and scarcely let them out of our sight for a moment. I wonder how many grandmas sit alone in their houses on May Day just waiting for a smiling child to place a basket of happy flowers on their doorsteps. I think I'll call my mom and wish her a Happy May Day, just in case!
What a nice memory! I wish those types of things were more common nowadays.
ReplyDeleteTreasured memories! I agree times have changed and it saddens me to have lost the innocence and trust we experienced then.
ReplyDeleteWe did the same thing that you did as kids. I have a friend who delivers us some sort of flowery crafty item every May Day. Today it was a pink plastic pail w/shovel filled with a bit of sand and some silk flowers. I'd post a picture but I think our camera is out of commission. It's always fun to see what she will come up with.
ReplyDeleteHey, does that mean I am the grey haired lady with wrinkles?
ReplyDeleteWell, Kim, if you are the gray haired lady with wrinkles, you sure have me fooled!
ReplyDeleteI used to take May Baskets to my neighbor ladies when I was little too. It seems like we always had lilacs. And probably tulips. Thanks for jogging my memory!
ReplyDeleteGuess I missed out on all the fun...
ReplyDelete