May, that is the mother of glad months & Ackworth Too!

In spite of the continuous rain and a streaming cold, I really haven't overlooked the fact that May is here. I am simply having a Chaucerian moment by not decking my garlands until today - the 3rd of May. Here is Chaucer's celebration of 3 May from Book 2 of his Troilus and Criseyde:
In may that moder is of monthes glade,
That fresshe floures, blewe, white, and rede,
Ben quike agayn, that wyneter dede made,
And ful of bawme is fletyng euery mede:
Whan Phebus doth his bryghte bemes sprede
Right in the white bole, it so betidde
As I shal synge,on mayes day the thrydde.

And to illustrate this, I thought one of Elaine Reichek's embroideries would be nice - so I went hunting, and what else did I find? Elaine is into Ackworth samplers! For some of you not familiar with Elaine's works, she draws on the tradition of embroidered samplers to create conceptual, word-based art, replacing traditional prayers, and educational texts on samplers with quotations from art history and mythology. In one of her workes in MOMA called Sampler (Starting Over) Elaine painstakingly replicated images of three black abstract paintings and a statement by the artist Ad Reinhardt, her painting teacher. On the right are lines spoken by Penelope in The Odyssey, by Homer, and a design from a Greek vase depicting women making textiles since Reinhardt described artmaking very much as Penelope described weaving her tapestry: as a constant process of making and remaking, beginning and beginning again. Click here to see this work.
Today was the day when we used to gather in the streets or gardens and parks to sing Gathering Nuts in May. Did you? Here we go gathering nuts in May, Nuts in May, nuts in May, Here we go gathering nuts in May, On a cold and frosty morning. Who will you have for nuts in May, Nuts in May, nuts in May, Who will you have for nuts in May, On a cold and frosty morning. We'll have [name] for nuts in May, Nuts in May, nuts in May, We'll have [name] for nuts in May, On a cold and frosty morning. Who will you have to fetch him/her away, Fetch him/her away, fetch him/her away, Who will you have to fetch him/her away, On a cold and frosty morning. We'll have [name] to fetch him/her away, Fetch him/her away, fetch him/her away, We'll have [name] to fetch him/her away, On a cold and frosty morning. [edit] Origins