In Due Season

The First of May, or May Day, is a holiday with no particular liturgical significance, and yet its history and implications connect so perfectly with the Easter Season that it seems right at home on the liturgical calendar. With roots all over Europe, May Day had an undeniable importance for early agrarian societies. Far fewer people these days think about the necessity of a good summer growing season, or about the fertility of farm animals; however, there was a time when these concerns were paramount, and communities did everything they could think of to ensure a successful year, with ritual, prayer, and celebration. In ancient Greece, May 1st was the festival of Maia, the goddess of fertility. This day celebrated the victory of spring over winter, and of life over death. In Ancient Rome, the festival of Floralia celebrated the goddess of flowers and fertility. Beltane marked the beginning of the pasture season for the ancient Gaels, and was celebrated with bonfires and a blessing of the cattle.

Though most of us no longer schedule our lives around crops and livestock, spring is still a time when we instinctively “come alive” to the new life growing all around us. The warmth in the air, the smell of damp earth, the bright green plants pushing up through the ground and the birds building nests– we feel these things in our cores. We revel in the new life, we celebrate the resurrection of the earth, and for Christians the resurrection of Christ. We sweep off the dust of winter– sometimes literally– and feel the deep joy of regrowth. Even if we look to a grocery store rather than our own farm for sustenance in the coming year, celebrating the annual victory of life over death is still relevant.

May Baskets are a beautiful– if somewhat forgotten– way of rejoicing in spring and giving thanks for new life. These little cones of flowers and treats are hung on the doors of friends and neighbors, as a sign of love and gratitude, and an acknowledgement that spring is finally here.

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Making May Baskets

• Gather your supplies: you’ll need scrapbook sheets or any other sturdy paper, ribbon or yarn, glue, scissors, a pencil, a compass, and decorations. Hot glue is ideal, though white glue works well too. Avoid glue sticks as they may not hold once the basket is filled.
• Some ideas for decoration are: paper doilies, scraps of lace, stickers, washi tape, beads, or pompoms.
• When they are done, fill your baskets with flowers and/or treats. Lily of the Valley is traditional, and lovely if you can find it. Cookies, candies, tulips… use whatever strikes your fancy and/or is in bloom in your garden.
• Hang your May Basket on someone’s door, then ring the bell and run away! (Alternately, hand the baskets out sedately, face-to-face. Though the former might be more fun.)

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