May 1, 2004

Notice: Our next Council meeting will be held on Saturday, 05/15/04, at Headquarters
1122 NE 91 Street, Miami Shores
10:00 AM

Our May Day Peasant Picnic is scheduled for Sunday May 2nd at the Greynolds Park East @ 2:00 PM. The location for our picnic will be 167 Biscayne Boulevard.

Don thy peasant garb, gather thy flowers and bring "finger food", May flowers, thy dish, goblet and spoon. There will be music, dancing, games, archery
(bring your own bow and arrows) and let us go A-Maying!

The term A-Maying comes from the holiday known as May Day, which can be traced back to pre-Christian times. The Romans called the holiday "Floralia", and it was dedicated to the goddess of flowers, Flora. The festivities began on April 28, and ran until May 3rd and celebrated the coming of spring.

Roman children would rise early to gather flowers which would be brought to the Temple of Flora. The first youth to return to the temple was believed to have luck for the year. All would then decorate the temple, and the celebration would begin with plenty of wine, dancing and feasting. Even the Roman slaves were freed for the day to partake in the festivities.

May Day in England has always been a popular holiday with the peasants and one of the few pagan holidays that survived the Christian era. All would wake up before the sun and head out into the woods. After gathering their May flowers and cutting down a tree for the May pole, everyone would head back towards home to decorate their dwellings and themselves with their hawthorn and other flowers they collected. A "Queen and King of the May" would be chosen to reign over the day. Games, feasting and dancing created this wonderful celebration which culminated in the dance around the May pole with each participant holding a ribbon.

*Some of our outdoor events take place during very warm weather, so please think about wearing cool peasant garb. A large straw hat for protection from the sun is a welcome addition. When attending our special events, please think about your comfort, safety and the special period of history that we are trying to live, feel and keep this in mind especially at the feasts and picnics and banquets.

Types Of Food That Are Welcome To Outdoor Picnics:

Finger foods - remember that sometimes our special events may have as many as 125 hungry individuals.
Breads - home baked is nice and shows off your baking skills, but French loafs, round ryes and brown breads are also in period.
Fruits - every Renaissance villa had an abundance of orchard apples, pears, peaches and grapes (where do you think all that Italian wine comes from?)
Meats - cold roasts, especially chicken or turkey in any form, should be de boned, re-sliced and ready to serve.
Vegetables - a pre-cooked or raw vegetable platter
Hard Meats - salami, mortadella, prosciutto, along with assorted cheeses.
Sweet Treats - a nice way to end any meal but consider serving conditions, distance to travel and the ability to eat with a spoon or knife. Tarts, bread pudding, cookies, dried fruit, and fresh fruit are easy to eat. Please, no messy or gooey cakes or pies, as they are difficult to serve.

Additional Suggestions:

1. Should your dish or casserole require a special serving spoon or trivet, please furnish one.
2. When you bring a dish, please take it home with you. (A simple piece of masking tape with your name on the bottom will assure that your antique treasure or your Mother's or Aunt Minnie's ceramic platter from the Hassassensach Ceramic Fair of 1908 will not be dumped in the lost-and-found-bin at the warehouse!)
3. Pre-slice any meats at home if at all possible.
4. Be very careful of foods that the sun and heat will affect.
5. Assist with the preparation or clean-up.

***Attn; Group Directors and Council Members***

Any immediate messages or reminders of importance need to be emailed to me in order to post to the News Corner. Upon receipt of your message, the information will be posted and sent out to society members on the day it is received by me. Please send your information via email at: designsbyd@cfl.rr.com .

Thank you,
Web site Administrator

Renaissance Historical Society of Fl, Inc.
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