May is just around the corner and with it comes one of my favorite little known holidays in the U.S. May Day. I have observed the tradition of May Day since I was a small child. I always make a point to make four or five homemade May baskets and fill them with candy and flowers for some unsuspecting friends. On May 1 at dusk I take the homemade May baskets and hang them on the doors of my friends, ring the bell, and rush off before I am detected.
Some of my May basket recipients are elderly widows who live alone and I watch from an undetected station as they are pleasantly surprised to see the basket hanging on their doors brimming with flowers. I also always give a couple of baskets to neighborhood children who are not as enamored with the flowers, but are always happy to see the candy that is tucked into the basket. They are also usually giggling and wondering who left them the colorful basket on their door knob.
Of course if anyone asks----I know nothing of the enterprise. Sometimes I am pleasantly surprised in turn by a basket on my door as well. My niece who is now grown sends me a bouquet of flowers every year on May day in place of the May basket she would make if she were nearby.
Our grandmother got us started making May baskets each year and it is well worth the effort. It is one of those simple pleasure that is bound to give a whole lot of enjoyment for a brief moment or two to someone you know.
If you have never made a May basket----this is the year to start. Bake a few cookies, some brownies or some store bought candy and place it into your basket and then cover the contents with a lovely spray of seasonal flowers. It can be as simple as violets, lilacs, daffodils or forsythia---all are plentiful now. Map out your destinations and carry out the route at dusk.
You will be pleasantly surprised at how much fun this can be. May first is upon us----get ready and have a little fun!
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