The Merry Month of May

I expect that many of you will remember the weeks I spent making rag jackets for my son, granddaughter and a friend for the May Day procession of the Jack in The Green Festival, while I wasn't well. These are the three jackets in the above picture.

The walk took place on Saturday.

The making of these jackets really did give me a purpose to get up and go, when I was going through the uncharted waters of chemotherapy.

Sam and Amber left the house early on Saturday morning. The weather forecast was not good, but it kept dry.

Millie, the youngest granddaughter was not capable of the long walk from the harbour side to the site in Horfield where the procession ended, so it was decided that I would look after her and meet them half way, later in the afternoon.

Millie was happy to go on the swings in a Park about a mile and a half from where we live. It was still quite a hilly walk for the two of us but we did it with no problems.

Very soon we heard the beating of the drums and the sounds of the melodian, violin and pipes, so we knew that the procession was nearing the place where we were waiting.

Millie was pleased to be reunited with her daddy and I was very warmly greeted because most of the group knew that I had undergone chemo and admired my effort to get there, and of course, I'd made the jackets!

I must admit that they are among the nicest group of people that you could ever come across.

I was able to complete the walk (another 2 miles or so) and we ended up on Horfield Common where the Jack was *killed* and dismantled.

I dare say there are some deep folklore beliefs involved in all of this, but I am not at all interested in them.

What I am interested in, is the close-knit community spirit that goes on in this group and the way they react warmly to all those around them. I also love processions.

They inspire tradition and a community spirit that is sadly lacking in our area today.

I was so pleased that Amber could manage the long walk from the very beginning to the end and also that I could make the occasion too. I had no idea whether I would be well enough to go until the last minute and I was glad that the weather kept dry because the very next day turned out to be extremely wet in the morning.

Whatever the Jack did..... it has been raining and cold ever since.

If you would like photos of last years Jack in the Green you can read about it on my blog here.......

or you can find out more about the festival here. ( On the official site.)

Photos copyright: Maggie May

May is also the start of the summer and it is also the month of my birthday.

The green flowers in the garden are, I think, some kind of early clematis. They seem to battle through a passionflower every year, though the passion flower has been severely stunted by the bad frost of last winter and is still a brown mass of twiggy like bare stems. I do love to see these green flowers though.

Dicentra Spectabilis, otherwise known as Bleeding Heart, is another early flowering plant that seems to come out in my garden year after year, no matter what the weather throws at it. A truly lovely flower.

The primulas below have been nibbled by something or other, maybe from the little elves that live under the blue toad stool. I love the colour of the blue primula.

I wonder what the weather will be like for the rest of May this year?

Do other readers love this month, as much as I do?