May Day 2019

My Momma has been on my mind all morning. This is May Day :) . The only day of the school year that she would keep me home. Our day started at 3 a.m. with coffee, then breakfast at 3:30 a.m. By 4 a.m. the kitchen was cleaned up, and the first load of clothes had been put thru the wringer washer, and waiting for a bit more daylight to hang them out. Next, we stripped all the beds and took the mattresses outside, where they would be beaten and filled with sunshine. The bedding was to be washed and hung out. Windows were opened, screens were taken off, sills were wiped out. Curtains came down and waited to be washed. The frig was emptied and scrubbed. Cabinets were emptied, all the dishes were re-washed and then organized. Dresser drawers were emptied, cleaned, new sachets put in the back of each one, and then organized as we put everything back in place. While the windows were open and the beds were out, Momma would take a gallon of bleach and pour a little in each floor, then stand at the front door with a water hose, back door open. My job was to sweep the bleach water out the back door. When the sheets were dry, they were brought in, ironed and put back on the beds. Then it was break time - - we either had scrambled egg sandwiches, or perhaps pimento cheese sandwiches, while we sat in the porch swing and talked. The afternoons were just as busy, but focused more on the outside. Time to clean out the flowerbeds closest to the house. Then, we would empty the chicken nests and put fresh straw in there for them, and scrape the floors clean. Next was the compost pile, taking what was in it and putting it in the flowerbeds, then washing it. By the time daddy got home from work, it was supper time - always fried potatoes and red beans with cornbread on this May Day. After supper it was time to add the final touches to the day. Curtains were hung back up. Trash was taken out to the burn barrel and set on fire. The old broom being the first thing to burn, and the new broom was used from the back door to the front. NOW - we were ready for spring & summer, the new year <3 I love you Momma, thank you for these memories