Aloha, My Friend,

Ah, May. It is such a wonderful month, isn’t it?

The very name of the month bears witness to the innumerable optimistic possibilities within the human soul. Is that why the month is so universally celebrated with rituals of renewed life and rancorous joy? After the harsh steel of winter fades away from the Northern Hemisphere it is replaced by the warm, soft breath and touch of Bridget or some other lovely, bedazzling and nearly iridescent goddess. Spring is behind us and summer is still yet to impose itself.  The first crops have been sown; the cattle and sheep are led out to their summer pastures. The ground frost has thawed and the fields are again fertile. Prayers are offered to the spirits and the various deities to give thanks for Earth’s rebirth, the evidence of which is everywhere, in the vast plains of wildflowers, the trees abloom, and the breezes now moist and flush with the songs of the many birds.

In times past, on the 30th of April, bonfires would be lit across the European continent so that they could “Dance into May.” In Ireland this time was referred to as Beltane and was celebrated with the dancing around the Maypole, feasting and the giving away of colored eggs as a talisman for fertility. One ritual that I particularly admire was their practice of reaffirming their sense of community. On this Beltane eve, after the village bonfire was lit each household would douse their own hearth and would then relight their home fire from the common bonfire.

In Hawaii May 1st is a big day. May Day is called Lei Day and has been set aside to celebrate native Hawaiian culture and arts. It is a day for the giving of colorful and fragrant leis and performing Hawaiian chants and songs as well as the hula. – “ Hula is the language of the heart, therefore the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people.” This is then followed on May 5th (5-5) with “Boy’s Day.” This festival is celebrated throughout Hawaii by a family flying of a beautiful carp fish windsock, each streamer symbolizing a son. The carp, or koi, is respected for its strength and perseverance as it navigates upstream against powerful currents. The carp can live for 50 years in the wild and even longer in captivity, thus a fitting symbol for traits desired in a son. Boy’s Day evolved from the traditional Japanese Iris Festival because the stem of the iris looks like a sword and the flower is believed to protect the family and ward off evil spirits.

And, yes, there is an Hawaiian celebration of Girl’s Day. It is held on 3-3, March 3rd.

And this Second Sunday is also Mother’s Day. I ran into an interesting fun factoid along the way to writing this epistle. In England they have a practice called Mothering Day that has similar features to the American Mother’s Day but has a less commercial genesis. In England, Mothering Sunday is believed to have originated from the 16th century Christian practice of visiting one’s mother church annually. Most English churchgoers attend the nearest parish to their home, which is colloquially referred to as their “daughter church”. Historically, it was considered important for people to return to their “mother church”–either the church they grew up in or the main Cathedral in their area–at least once during the year. It became customary, therefore, that people would make this return visit on the forth Sunday of Lent. As a result, mother-church day reunited families that had been separated when children that had left home to work as house servants were able to return for a visit.

In the States, Julia Ward Howe, author of the “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” attempted to institute a national celebration of mothers that honored women’s inclinations toward peace. In 1872, she initiated and promoted a Mother’s Day for Peace, to be held on June 2, which was celebrated the following year by women in 18 cities across America. The holiday continued to be honored by Bostonian women for another decade, but eventually phased out after Howe stopped underwriting the cost of the celebrations.

Meanwhile, in 1912, Anna Jarvis’ efforts to honor her mother, and all mothers, was met with success. Her home state of West Virginia adopted an official Mother’s Day; two years later, the U.S. Congress passed a Joint Resolution, signed by President Wilson, establishing a national Mother’s Day emphasizing the role of women in their families. Ever since, Mother’s Day has been celebrated by Americans on the second Sunday in May.

Ironically, the country’s greatest proponent of motherhood, Anna Jarvis, never had children of her own.

So, gather your loved ones up and come on out to the Second Sunday Fair at the Square this May 11th from Noon until 5pm. The Square will be filled with the usual and the unexpected including art & music, plants & produce.

This month we are also featuring the jewelry art from Rene Barrett of Just Bead It. Her elaborate jewelry will be on display Wednesday-Saturday 11-6 PM and Sunday 12-5 PM. Join the fun and celebrate Merry Month of May with a stroll around Railroad Square..