May. a soft syllable, gentle name for the best month in the garden year: cool, misty mornings gently burned away with a warming spring sun, followed by breezy afternoons and chilly nights. The discussion of philosophy is over; it's time for work to begin.
The name for the month of May—along with the rest of the months of the year—comes from Latin. We can thank the Romans, from emperors to popes, for instituting the modern calendar. May entered English in the 1050s. It developed from the Old English Maius, borrowed directly from the Latin Maius, short for Maius mēnsis, “Maia’s month.” But who is this Maia?
The Greek goddess Maia was one of the Pleiades, the companions of Artemis, goddess of the hunt. This Maia was the mother of Hermes, the messenger of the Gods. But the Romans had yet another goddess named Maia, who just happened to share a name with the Greek goddess. The Greek goddess became conflated with the Roman Maia Majesta, a goddess of fertility and spring—appropriate for the growth and increase we see in the month of May.
Want to dig a little deeper? The Greek name Maia comes from a root meaning “mother, nurse, midwife.” The Roman Maia appears to be related to magnus, meaning “great” and source of such words as magnify.
Most of us look forward to our birthday all year and, if planned properly, it can be the best day of our year. If you’re lucky enough to have been born in May then you might even have the greatest birthday of all. Here’s why it’s best to be a May child.
1. May babies are the biggest and bounciest May babies can be up to 7 ounces heavier than those born at other times of the year, meaning that you start life with an extra zing in the pram.
2. Summer is on its way Not long after you’re born, summer arrives, so you spend the first few months of your life absorbing loads of Vitamin D, fresh air and hope.
3. Love is in the air. May means Maia’s month. Maia was an Italic goddess of spring and known as Maia Maiestas or Fauna by the Romans. She was seen as a good goddess and the 15th of May was dedicated to her, and it’s a month that celebrates the blossoming buds of flowers as nature prepares itself for summer. And folklore is full of lusty youths and gentle maidens falling in love before skipping around the maypole.
4. Fun fact: a native Old English name for the fifth month of the year was þrimilce. It literally meant “three milkings,” apparently because it was touted that the cows were so productive in ancient England that they could be milked three times per day.
5. Oh Lucky You People born in May consider themselves to be the luckiest, with levels of optimism much higher than for those born at other times of the year. And optimism is scientifically proved to make you happier, and may even lead to a longer life. Pop that Champagne now.
6. We’re not alone May babies share their birthday month with Mark Zuckerberg, singer James Brown, John F Kennedy, Queen Victoria, Audrey Hepburn, Eric Cantona, Karl Marx and Florence Nightingale.
7. The stars are with you. May hosts two Zodiac signs: Taurus and Gemini. The first two-thirds of the month symbolize personality traits such as mental strength and a focus on security. These people are patient, making them good teachers and instructors. Taureans are encouraging and always show due appreciation. The final ten days of May are symbolized with the Gemini Zodiac. People with this sign are believed to be good communicators with others. However, they can also be indecisive, showing that they do not necessarily have good communication with themselves. They are interested and intelligent folks who put great effort into a quest for knowledge. Geminis also adapt well to changing situations.
8. Asparagus If you love asparagus, you’re in for a birthday treat as its the seasonal time for this vegetable that is packed with spring goodness. Baskets are also symbolic of May if Easter falls in this month. These are associated with bountiful harvests and are symbolic of prosperity and abundance. The last of the Easter symbols, eggs symbolize new life.
9. Emeralds The birth stone for May is the emerald. To the ancient Romans, emeralds were dedicated to the goddess Venus because ‘it symbolized the reproductive forces of nature”.
10. May month also has two special flowers associated with her: Lily of the Valley and the Mayflower. Although certainly beautiful with its delicate white bells, Lily of the Valley is highly poisonous. This can be interpreted symbolically in a multitude of ways, but perhaps the most simplified version would say, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”
So, you know what to say when friends and family ask you what you want for your birthday.
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How can I help the ones in need?
Often we hear what can I do to help, I do not have much means!
Helping can be done in so many ways, like give someone a helping hand. It is about simple things like holding the door for someone, be a happy person, a person others like to be around. Set some goals for yourself and then dedicate yourself to achieving them. Oh, and let’s try to put Luck’s cousin, Wish, on a time-out while we’re at it. It’s far more rewarding to make things happen yourself instead of wishing for luck.
We are really blessed with all the help we receive from you! You are the most valued part of our organization because without you none of this could happen.
Thank you all for your Support of FDDR.
The lives from many get changed for the better thanks to your help and we can not do it without your continuous support.
Every little bit you do helps so much, even just sharing our page and live feeds.
Do you know? $5.00 makes a pizza meal for 4 yes four people! With 1 loaf of bread you can make 10 sandwiches to feed 5 people (if needed we can supply peanut butter & jelly)
If you live close and are able to make an add-on meal any day please let us know (FDDR2day@gmail.com) and we can arrange to get your meal to those that need it. Any number will do 10, 20 or more! You can make whatever meal works for you like 2 sandwiches, mac & cheese, sloppy Joes, hot dogs, pasta dinner spaghetti/ mostaciolli, etc. We can help you with packaging or ingredients from our small pantry if needed.
Some numbers
- On May 3 we will serve meal #105,000 to the hungry! YES 105,000+ Meals since the start of #FDDR
Also ZIGGY, the bus, drove more then 60,000+ miles for pickup and deliveries in service to the ones in need.
All this is possible thanks to the support we receive form YOU! Your help really works and you can see it happen on our live videos.
We started out with an average of 40 to 60 meals a day and nowadays our average is up to 100-120+ meals a day and rising.
If you are not able to prepare a meal consider sponsoring meals, make a monetary donation via check, gift-card, Cash.me/HelpFDDR or www.venmo.com/Help-FDDR to sponsor a meal or operating costs or use any Credit/Debit-card at www.FDDR.org or www.paypal.me/HelpFDDR Choose and order much-needed items from our ALL NEW Wish list for much needed items.
https://smile.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3JGX6DJNV8KVH or www.myregistry.com/organization/fddr-feeding-detroit-trenton-mi/1990486 Remember it means that more people in need will not go to sleep hungry!
We had a few viewers ask if it is possible to donate $1 or $5 to FDDR, YES you can we just prefer you send a smaller cash donation via Cash.me/HelpFDDR or www.venmo.com/Help-FDDR or the donate button on Facebook or even in regular mail, that way we get not charged a 3% fee by the bank on the donation.
Please if you can help in any way now is the time to come together and step up. Remember everything FDDR does is by volunteers like you and from your donations. Your donations go towards the ones in need!
