May 1st is the day for Flower Power. Bringing in the May – gathering flowers and greenery and bringing it home – was originally designated to celebrate the first day of summer. Yes, for all you winter-probes out there, your misery is officially over as of May 1: summer has arrived. Technically it's supposed to be over on Feb. 1 with the first day of spring but that's another story.
Bringing in the May is an ancient custom but flower-centric festivals have survived the test of ages and are still prevalent today. And, really, who wouldn't enjoy celebrating flowers?!
In Hawaii it is Lei Day where gifts of leis are bestowed. In London, it was customary for children to take flowers from house to house and receive pennies
they then threw into a wishing well. In France, cows have flowers attached to their tails – touching a floral-bedecked cow on May Day is believed to bring good luck! In Germany, a sweet old tradition is for a boy to plant a tree in front of the window of a girl he loves.
It’s also a celebration designed to foster unselfish giving. Since early times a May Day nosegay or basket was quietly and secretly left at the door of a neighbor or loved one. Giving without receiving was the name of the game, a tradition that was widely practiced and enhanced during the Victorian era.
And who could forget Mother’s Day, where the traditional gift is a huge bouquet of flowers?
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Custom Dolls, Houses & Miniatures / CDHM