May Day

We celebrated our first May Day today.  Being a cross-quarter day, marking the midpoint between the spring equinox and the summer solstice, it signifies the peak of spring, and the forthcoming summer.  We joined together for flower crafting, singing, dancing, playing and feasting.  Enjoying the sunshine and fresh air, as many many before us have.  Celebrating community and a shared belief that we are all connected to each other as well as the earth.

This was our first outing to meet some local homeschoolers and they were all very friendly and welcoming.  Through a stroke of pleasant irony, The Boy’s previous First Grade teacher just happened to bring her son to the playground while we were there.  It was nice to see her (pregnant!) and fill her in on how it’s going.  It somehow seemed like a nice closure to school.  One thing I was really concerned about when The Boy left school was the loss of community.  Once we were gone, it seemed barely noticeable, and now it seems like a non-issue.

The Girl was very excited about the maypole, having watched several maypole dances online.  As we gathered to watch the experienced maypole dancers show us how it was done, she began to cry because she wanted so badly to join. Her turn came soon enough and she was delighted.

For the feast, I brought gluten free pasta with pesto and a gluten free lemon cake (with mini maypole!). The feast was delicious and I have to say that there once was a time that I disliked the potluck and having now enjoyed so many great ones, now I love it!  Not only is it enjoyable to build community through food, but what a treat to enjoy so many new dishes!

It was a lovely, inspiring day all around.