It’s a year since I wrote this post to coincide with the May Day celebrations in our town. This year they have been cancelled, for obvious reasons, but people have rallied around and decorated their homes and front gardens to mark this rather special festival. It’s loved by children, as it is the mainly the children of the town who dress up and take part.
The rather grumpy-looking May Queen is in a front garden nearby – caption “We are not amused that our May Day Parade has been cancelled” – and Jack-in-the-Green (the Green Man) turned up in my own front garden…..
The May Day parade in our small town is always led by the same three characters: first comes the Marshal, mounted on a gleamingly groomed horse, followed by the Town Crier ringing a bell and calling “O-yez”. Behind him comes Jack-in-the-Green, a walking tree mounted on a wood and wire frame. It’s all very English.
Jack is my favourite character as he represents the pagan origins of May Day celebrations. I wonder, each year, what sort of shoes the person in Jack’s green costume might be wearing. This year the shoes were hardly visible. I spotted a flash of sensible brown leather. Maybe the days of the white trainers and socks, which in years past have provided chuckles of amusement for the watching crowd, are over.
The Green Man, who Jack-in-the-Green represents, is pagan but his image appears in Christian churches around the world.
I always look out for him…
View original post 29 more words
