Happy May Day!

The Maypole Dance!

May Day is the celebration of the onset of the Month of May and the arrival of spring.

For centuries it has been marked as a joyful celebration with flowers.

The Maypole dance is an old English tradition for May Day. On the first day of May, villagers would gather for the celebration. A towering maypole was set up on the village green. Young girls wore floral garland wreaths in their hair and danced with ribbons around the Maypole.

These lovely spring rituals even continued here in the States into the 1950's. My mother remembers celebrating May Day in grade school. In her day, they called it May Day/Play Day. She recalls dancing with crepe paper around the tether ball pole and playing lot's of fun games. Too bad these old traditions seem to fade away.

So celebrate May...wear a flower in your hair and do a little dance!

Happy May Day!