5 Fun Ways To Celebrate May Day When You’re Stuck Inside
Bring the exuberant energy of May Day into your home!
Getty With COVID-19 prompting everyone to stay inside, you may be wondering how to celebrate May Day without leaving your home.
Since ancient times, some version of May Day has been celebrated in cultures all over the world.
Known as Floralia in ancient Rome, Walpurgisnacht by the Germanic Teutons, Beltane by the Celts, and as Lei Day in Hawaii, this seasonal holiday embodies the bawdy, exuberant, exhilarating energy of spring fever.
Did you ever dance around a Maypole or create a flower-filled May basket, then leave it on someone’s doorstep as their secret admirer? Or maybe you participated in crowning the May Queen and King? Probably not.
And it’s too bad since all of these traditions capture the original meaning of May Day: love, lust, flowers, fertility, and frolicking in the meadows.
Couldn’t we all use a big dose of that right about now?
In early Celtic folklore, Beltane was considered the time of the year when the "Sun Child" born at the winter solstice reached puberty and hooked up with a maiden goddess. He then becomes her consort, known as the "Green Man," or the horned god.
The fertility of their "Sacred Marriage" was symbolized pretty graphically when the Maypole — the ultimate phallic symbol — was placed into a hole in Mother Earth, into her womb.
Young men and women wove their ribbons around it in their magical back-and-forth dance, bringing them closer and closer together until they were all snuggled up against the pole. Then they just ran off into the woods and fields and coupled freely, fertilizing the Earth and each other!
It might be kind of hard to imagine how you can tap into that lusty, expansive energy when you’re in lockdown. But with a little imagination and just a few props, you’d be surprised at what you can conjure up!
Here are 5 fun ways to celebrate May Day when you're stuck inside.
1. Make a May basket and deliver it to someone you love.
You’ll need paper, glue, and a bunch of real or DIY flowers. Feel free to decorate it any way you want.
Roll the paper so that it forms a cone and staple or glue it together — you can add a handle, too.
If you’re lucky enough to have a garden, pick your own flowers. But if not, you can make them from tissue paper. Or, if all else fails, just draw some beautiful ones with markers or crayons, cut them out, and attach them to a few chopsticks, straws, or pipe cleaners (if you have them)!
Fill your cone-basket with your flowers and leave them on someone’s doorstep or just outside their bedroom door.
Whether it’s a surprise or not, it’s bound to brighten both of your days!
2. Decorate a May bush.
While it would be fun to make your own maypole, even a mini-one, it’s a little tricky getting all the ribbons wrapped around it unless you’ve got a lot of people to help you.
So instead, you can embrace the Irish tradition of a May bush, which is definitely easier to re-create. Technically, you’d use the branch of a hawthorn tree but any bush or small tree in your backyard or home will do in a pinch.
The idea is to adorn it with colorful ribbons, rags, pictures, and even eggshells, representing your wishes from now until the summer solstice.
Like the May basket, it’s a fun project for children of all ages!
3. Crown yourselves as May Queen or King.
In the ancient May Day rituals, the May Queen and King represented the Goddess and her consort, the Green Man.
They led villagers through town to the Maypole where everyone danced and sang in a joyful celebration of spring and the blooming energy of Mother Earth.
Have fun making crowns with whatever crafts you have on hand — construction paper, flowers, paper plates, markers, stickers, and glitter. Get creative.
If you’re with your family, you can all make crowns and declare everyone Queens and Kings. Or if you’re by yourself, have your own personal coronation ceremony honoring your gifts and declaring what a fabulous monarch you’ll be!
You may not have a Maypole, but you can certainly march to your May bush to decorate it. Then, afterwards, you can enjoy an evening of music, dancing, or just a good romantic movie.
4. Rally in support of workers’ rights.
May 1st is also celebrated around the world as International Workers’ Day.
While we may not be able to gather for parades or rallies right now, we can certainly cheer on all the frontline — the essential workers that are keeping our world healthy and functioning.
In New York City, we do that every night at 7 p.m. when the hospital shifts change. We all open our windows, yell, clap, and bang on whatever we can find — pots and pans, drums, and cowbells.
Obviously, that doesn’t work so well in the suburbs or rural areas where people are more spread out.
Why not organize a parade of cars with your neighbors on May 1st and drive by your local hospital or down Main Street to show your appreciation? It may not be in line with the original intention of International Worker’s Day, but it’s perfect for the times we’re in now.
5. Write love letters to each other.
All the fun rituals and traditions associated with May Day make this a great seasonal family holiday, like Halloween (also celebrated around the world by various names) in the second half of the year.
But remember, the original meaning of this ancient Earth holy day is all about celebrating the fertility of the Earth as it bursts out of winter, and how we, humans, can mirror that energy with our own lusty behavior.
So, take some time during the day to write a beautiful (maybe even a little racy) love letter to your sweetie. Then, that evening, after you’ve finished whatever other May Day traditions you’ve embraced, read your letters to each other and cap it off with some fabulous, exuberant sex!
If you’re single, it’s also a powerful time to re-ignite your relationship with your deepest self and renew your practice of self-love. Explore the concept of "self-marriage" and create your own special ceremony.
Be inspired to create your own quarantined version of May Day this year, even if you can’t do it outside!
Consider it practice for a full-blown, bawdy, joyful maypole dance party in 2021!
Deborah Roth is a certified Relationship Coach and Interfaith Minister who loves supporting couples in navigating the ebbs and flows of maintaining and nurturing successful, long-term relationships. To learn more about her work, you can visit Spirited Living or email her to schedule an introductory couples coaching session or to get a list of her favorite relationship books.