"the fair maid who, the first of may,
goes to the fields at break of day,
and washes in dew from the hawthorn tree,
will ever after handsome be".
i don't remember how it began, but as teenagers, my sister jan and i used to sneak out the back door early on the 1st of may and wash our faces in the morning dew. we both continued the practice with our own children and they continue with theirs.
when i moved to newfoundland in 1975 i discovered may 1st could mean snow, or at the very least dry grass and mud. so it has become a purely symbolic ritual. (in newfoundland snow that falls on may 1st it thought to have medicinal value for your vision . in the past it was often collected and melted and used to bathe your eyes).
yesterday i knit this scarflette in honour of may day and the morning dew.
1 comment:
Obviously not a Newfoundland saying, as you were a teenager somewhere other than Newfie... I haven't heard that before! I hope it worked.
In UK we always said "Ne'er cast a clout till May be out". This meant don't shed your winter clothes until the end of May... or it could mean until the hawthorn flowers are blooming.
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