Merry May
May! You may not have been up at dawn to wash your face in the dew, or indeed to join the merry Morris dancers at the Black Mill on Beverley Westwood, but the world is definitely green and fresh again – and everything is certainly well-watered after the last month! The beginning of May has been celebrated since Roman times as a chance to greet the coming summer, when we no longer have to have ‘button to chin’ but can happily ‘cast a clout’ or two without the risk of pneumonia! I remember an enthusiastic and very optimistic lady at my junior school trying to teach us to frolic round a maypole, but it always ended in a hopeless tangle. Then an enthusiastic jerk on a ribbon made the top fall off the pole, and the project was abandoned. (I don’t think Risk Assessments or Health and Safety had yet been invented!)
Please note that this month’s Drop-in is NOT on the first Thursday as usual, but a week later, on Thursday May 9th, from 10 until 12 at Burnby Hall. This is because of the local elections being held there on the 2nd; if you get the date wrong, you will only be given a small pencil instead of a cup of coffee and a friendly welcome! And at the Drop-in you won’t need your photo ID either.
The other date for your diary is Thursday 23rd May; this is the day of our AGM which will be at 2 p.m. in the Methodist Church on Chapmangate. In addition to the business of the meeting, you’ll be able to hear from Louise Partridge, the Community Volunteer Co-ordinator from Pocklington Rugby in the Community, about some of the projects that the groups has undertaken and supported in our area. We are so often unaware of all that goes on around us to help and support all kinds of organisations and partnerships; Louise’s role was created to enable people in the Pocklington area to work together in doing this. The talk promises to be interesting and entertaining, so we hope to see many of you there.
Now, this is the part where I usually have some messages from our groups, inviting new members or telling us what plans they have for future events. However, this month I haven’t had any messages from group leaders; everything seems to be ticking along nicely! So it’s over to you to decide whether now is the time to take up something new. Maybe an outdoor activity like walking, gardening, croquet or pétanque appeals now that winter is well and truly gone? Maybe you have an enthusiasm or hobby which has been on the shelf for years and which you might enjoy reviving? Give it some thought – you may find just what you’re looking for on the website!
We always have two Bank holidays to celebrate in May, at the beginning and end of the month. May also seems to be a month for thinking of others, with Christian Aid Week, Red Cross Awareness week, Deaf Awareness Week and Fair Trade Day all giving us a nudge. I’m not so sure about Be Nice to Nettles Week though… nettles are never nice to me!
And May 12th is apparently National Limerick Day, so
A Pocklingtonian said,
“ForgiveMe, but I have a mind like a sieve.
I just do not know
Where on earth I should go
In order to learn, laugh and live?”
So my response would be to say.
“Take care and stay safe throughout May,
You’ll find rich dividends.
And laughter and friends,
If you join us in the u3a!”
Eat your heart out Simon Armitage!
Rosemary Waugh (Secretary)
