The Merry Month of May

May is a bit of an odd month in Malaysia. Most of the major celebrations are over and the June school holidays are coming up at the end of the month, so it's almost like everyone's holding their breath waiting or looking for an excuse to let their hair down a little. Well, we Malaysians should just relax and make May a month of fun like they do in Europe and America. 

May is also the only month of the entire year so entirely associated with happiness for hundreds of years that "the merry month of May" has become a cliche. But how did May get its reputation for being the fun month? Well, the phrase is first attributed to Thomas Dekker (1572-1632), an Elizabethan dramatist. The poem of the same name was part of his play, The Shoemaker's Holiday,which was first performed in 1599. 

Bruce Lee's father,
Lee Hoi Chuen

But "the Merry month of May" is also the title of a novel by James Jones, a 1955 a movie in which Bruce Lee's father, Lee Hoi Chuen, was featured, a duet from the Edward German operetta Merrie England, and an Irish folk song that became the regimental march of the 10th Royal Hussars.

And May 1st is more than just May Day when people in Europe danced around a huge maypole. It's also Mother Goose Day, Loyalty Day and Save The Rhino Day, while May 2nd is both Baby Day as well as Brothers and Sisters Day.

But the other days of this month commemorate more than a few rather unconventional things, especially in America and the UK. Did you know that May 4th is National Bird Day in America? It is the oldest (1894) of the bird recognition days in the US. And the British have No Diet Day on May 6th. It was created in 1992 to help people value their natural bodies instead of trying to be forever slimmer or prettier. It's not surprising that the creator, Mary Evans Young, is the director of a British group called Diet Breakers. 

The Japaanese commemorate National Children's Day on May 5th (it's a national holiday), while the Irish have their Limerick Day on My 12th the birthday of writer Edward Lear, when people commemorate those little poems like "There was once a man from Nantucket..." And then the very next day, they celebrate Leprechaun Day which is as much about Irish national pride as it is about their national elves.

There are proper ones being celebrated in the US, of course, such as National Teacher's Day (the first Tuesday of the first full week in May), World Press Freedom Day (May 3rd), National Nurses Day on May 6th (in fact May 6-12 is National Nurse's Week, May 8th is National Student Nurse's Day, and May 12th is International Nurse's Day). There is also VE Day to commemorate the end of WWII in Europe on May 8th,  and World Red Cross/Crescent Day on the  same date. 

There are many funny 'national' days peculiar to America, especially, but most of them have no official recognition. Take National Hoagie Day (May 5th) for feasting on  great long sandwiches like the one shown, Lost Sock Memorial Day (do they eulogise old socks long lost and gone,I wonder) and National Sea Monkey Day on the 15th.For more merry May days, have a look at this link

  

So what are your plans for making merrie for this May?