May day

[JoB]

ok.. maybe this is more nostalgia than a true rave.. tho believe it or not, i do feel passionately about this..

hubby just walked out the door.. and to him May day is about social injustice and worker solidarity… with the marches and the strike, it is a good day for him.. a sign of hope.

to those for whom worker’s rights resonate today.. Happy May Day! This one is historic.

to me.. May Day is about flowers and kindness and honoring women in my community.

I saw this wonderful sign on 35th and Roxbury (i think) which said May is the month for honoring all women:)

When i was a kid, we would pick flowers on May Day and to make bouquets.. which we would take to the doorsteps of older women in our neighborhood living alone…

we would knock and then run to hide as she came to the door to find her flowers…

This year.. for the first time.. i don’t know where to find the ladies in my neighborhood to grace with flowers… and i am saddened.

yes.. this kid has continued every May day to brighten the day of at least one woman with flowers… even tho if i were alone.. i might well be the recipient:)

I don’t know if kids still continue this old tradition… every woman i have gifted has been old enough to know the tradition…

i do know i have given it a little jumpstart with the neighborhood children in the many neighborhoods i have lived in:)

but since i don’t know where your doorsteps are..

this year i would like to send my thoughts, prayers and appreciation to all those women in my community who should be getting flowers and children’s giggles today.

Happy May Day

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[herongrrrl]

Happy May Day to you! I think the May baskets are a beautiful tradition. Our family gets up at the very crack of dawn to go watch the Morris Dancers at Gasworks Park on May Day morning, another very old tradition for this time of year. I always think about getting up even earlier to put some flowers on various doorsteps, but haven’t done so…I can think of a couple lonely women who should have some flowers today, maybe I will bring them some.

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[Shibaguyz]

On the worker’s rights side of this, the other half of the Shibaguyz just started a new job today. He left his old job because he felt like he needed to in order to stand up for himself and move forward in a more positive direction. As a side note, he is the one who took one of those jobs listed here in the WSB forum… WOOHOO!! Thank you WSB!!

On the honoring women side of things. I will carry out your tradition today, JoB, and honor some women I know with flowers. I have never heard of this before but it sounds like a nice idea and surely would brighten anyone’s day.

Thank you for this reminder and education. This is how culture is created: one generation passes on to the next. I will pass this one on as well.

MAN I love the WSB!!

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[JoB]

i love the WSB too..

and i am tickled your partner is now working in West Seattle…

i hadn’t thought that my post would bring actual flowers to anyone’s doorstep… makes me a little teary:)

thanks shibaguyz and herongirl…

i am not lonely. but you sure did send me flowers today.

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[charlabob]

It sounds like a great tradition.

If you don’t know any women who live alone, you might also call a nursing home and find a couple of folks who never see visitors or get attention. I’m sure they’d love the flowers — even more, they’d love it if you stopped by for 15 minutes and told them the story.

Since I’m WFH today, I’ll do that too.

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[beachdrivegirl]

Yes, thanks for the education. i am actually the opposite of Shibaguyz. I have known the honoring women with flowers sort of thing but never knew about the workers rights side of May Day. Quite embarressing I know, but thanks for letting me know.

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[andrea]

JoB I grew up here in WS with a midwestern mom who taught my siblings and I the fun in May Day…we’d make all different sized paper baskets with construction paper, fill them with flowers from the yard, then drop them off on our older neighbors doorsteps…then run away and hide in the shrubs to see their reaction when they got the flowers! The look on their faces was always the best…somewhere between bewildered and happily surpirsed. I loved the May Day tradition as a kid, cause it made me realize spring was here (so summer was just around the corner!), and it made me feel good doing something nice for other people.

Thanks for the remembrances…I’m gonna call my momma now.

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[JoB]

thanks charla.

it hadn’t occurred to me to visit the local nursing home. i will do that today.

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[celeste17]

I was just going to suggest a nursing home. You might also look into private care facilities. I know of one on 16th past the college going towards westwood village. It takes up a whole block and has a sign out front with a heart on it.

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[Keith]

(Excerpted from Ciscoe Morris’ gardening column in today’s Seattle P-I)

Partake in a (hopefully) romantic May Day tradition.

One of the most exciting May Day traditions is to leave a basket filled with flowers, candies and other goodies on the doorstep of someone you’re attracted to, ring the doorbell and then run and hide before they spot you. Of course, you might not want to run away all that fast. The other part of the tradition is that if the recipient spots you before you’re able to hide, they’re supposed to chase, catch and kiss you.

Speaking from experience, much as you think your desired one would appreciate them, put your sneakers on if you include Brussels sprouts in the basket. You’ll need to run fast and hide quickly because the target of your affections may have the sudden urge to forgo kissing you in favor of pelting you with Brussels sprouts. That must be why my nickname for this delicious vegetable is “love nibbles.”

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[JoB]

LOL…

we only gifted little old ladies..

it never would have occurred to us to do the same to BOYS.

and i am pretty sure my mom wouldn’t have been so enthusiastic about that one:)

it just goes to show that there are a lot of traditions out there…

i kind of miss the may pole too..

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[herongrrrl]

JoB, Fremont Arts Council has a public may pole dance at Woodland Park every May Day. It’s lots of fun, with people dressed up and wearing flowers in their hair, and little kids wearing fairy wings running all over the place. Doing a may pole dance with 100 other people, many of whom have never done that dance before, is an interesting experience!

May Day also has roots in old agrarian fertility rituals that were supposed to make the crops grow better. In light of recent headlines, this might be a good year to think about revisiting some of those…

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