May!

WARNING: Readers who suffer from seasonal allergies, and those of you who are winter geeks, should probably stop reading now. I am about to extol the virtues of that wonderful month of May.

First and foremost, it is my birthday month. Everyone knows that May babies are the best! Even though this year’s birthday is not one I am looking forward to (70) I still love the month of May.

The glorious colors! The pinks, the purples, the yellows, the reds and, of course, bright green all around. The smells of tree blossoms and ground flowers fill up your senses, like a night in a forest. Yes, I stole that last line from John Denver. I bet John Denver loved May. How could anyone not?

For me, May is the month for beginnings. Others might claim January, with its resolutions. Others, the first day of spring. Still others, September and the start of school. No, for me May is when winter is finally put to bed and it is time to see new things, do new things, and learn new things. Amazing May!

I can remember, in my twenties, working in a dirty and old, dark and dingy pigments plant. In May you could slide open those old wooden doors on their rusty tracks and, until September, be almost working outside. In high school I went out for track two of those years. There was something about the spring sports. A little more laid back than the fall and winter sports. No cold football practices. No wrestling mat burns. Just amazing sunshine and warmth.

In May, school children and their teachers start to notice, and to coast into, the end of the school year. College students and their professors wrap things up in May.

Did I mention the lengthening days? Sure, June gets the call for the longest days of sunlight. But in May, you really start to notice that it stays light until 8:30 or longer. In May I can start my hikes at 5:30 AM and watch the woods wake up. I know John Denver would love that!

My favorite Classics author, Thomas Hardy, said it best “And the May month flaps its glad green leaves like wings!” Old Tom gets it! Be happy, it’s May!

If you still aren’t convinced that May is the best month of all, how about this? When Smokey Robinson sang “My Girl” and wanted to describe the beauty and warmth of his lover, did he compare her to October? No. Did he compare her to February? I think not! He’s got the month of May. Indeed! And, we all have the month of May, so get out there and enjoy and explore our beautiful May world.