Considering all that they do for all of us, every day should be Mother’s Day. But today, it’s official — Mother’s Day, 2023. Moms are the most influential people in our lives. George Washington once said: “ My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute my success in life to the moral, intellectual, and physical education I received from her.”
I know I’ve mentioned it before, but a national day of observance for moms was advocated and campaigned for by a West Virginian — Anna Jarvis. Jarvis had no children of her own, but she took up the cause in remembrance of her own mother. Anna Jarvis spent years working to provide resources for poor mothers in West Virginia. Her campaign finally paid off when President Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation declaring Mother’s Day an official holiday on May 9, 1914.
It should be noted that a Mother’s Day was first proposed in 1870 by the same woman who wrote the lyrics to “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” After the Civil War, Julia Ward Howe suggested a Mother’s Day to recognize peace and protest war. She organized annual events in Boston to honor mothers, but nothing official ever came of her efforts.
Mother’s Day is typically the busiest day of the year for restaurants — topping even Valentine’s Day. So if you’re looking for a gift for your mom, according to a survey by RetailMeNot, what moms want most for Mother’s Day is to dine out with her family. We often say that a lot of people that go to church are CEOs — they go on Christmas, Easter and one other time during the year. But it turns out that many people will start their Mother’s Day celebration by attending church with their moms — making Mother’s Day the third-most attended church service behind Easter and Christmas.
Many countries have a version of Mother’s Day, but of course the traditions vary depending on where you are. In Ethiopia, Mother’s Day is a three-day festival that involves lots of food and singing. In Thailand, parades are held in honor of moms, with jasmine given out as a common gift…. It’s estimated that there are 2.2 billion moms worldwide, with 85 million residing in the United States. Happy Mother’s Day. — 30 —
It was a nice day yesterday, and after cutting the grass, we sat outside with some friends and had a glass of wine. During the conversation, Claire remarked that she though maybe she was a gypsy. Well, that got me to thinking….
Soon after I met Claire and her family. I began to hear the term “gypsies.” I’d heard the word before but I kind of associated it with the “romantic” version of Gypsies — colorful folks in quaint caravans who play the fiddles, perform palm readings and dress in scarves and bright peasant dresses…. always cheerfully on the move.
But it became apparent that in Cleveland, Ohio, they have a less festive image of the Gypsies, that have them living outside the law in makeshift encampments and preying on good, upstanding folks. Another term that the people in Cleveland (and I’m sure other places) use is Hillbillies. It seems like Hillbilly and Gypsy kind of fall into the same category….. mostly an undesirable moniker.
Believe it or not, growing up in Maysville, I don’t remember either of those terms being used. During the summer, especially, we had “migrant workers,” come to town and usually set up a “camp” just outside the city limits. Although many came to pick cotton, or to “pull bolls,” the the biggest group was there to cut broomcorn, and were referred to as “broomcorn Johnnies.” These groups probably fell into the the same category as Hillbillies and Gypsies did in Cleveland.
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But, as happens regularly, I got a little off the subject — I intended this blog to be about Gypsies. So first things first — they’re not really Gypsies. The call themselves Rom,” or “Romany.” Gypsy is a name that was put on them by the gadie — in the Romany language, gadie means “barbarian.” And to the Romanys, this means anyone not a Romany. The term “Gypsy” probably isn’t a good term and it’s not even accurate — it’s a shortened version of “Egyptian,” and was chosen because of the belief that Gypsies originated in the Nile delta. They didn’t — they’re originally from northern India. So the Romany may have been from northern India, but they didn’t stay there. By the 11th century they were in Persia (Iran, today) and by the 1400s could be found all over Europe. Today an estimated two to five million Romany live all over the world, including North America and Australia. But the majority still reside in Europe with large numbers in the Czech and Slovak Republics, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Romania. (Romania takes its name from Rome, the empire — not Rom, the people.)
However, the Romany presence in Europe didn’t mean that the Europeans were very pleased to have them there. It didn’t help that the Romany, traditionally nomadic and organized in family-oriented bands, lived and worked on the fringes of settled societies. These social traits often made the Romany scapegoats for trouble — after all, they were just “passing through.” Romany were frequently labeled grifters, thieves, and witches, and were persecuted accordingly.
They were often given the boot — Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, and England are just some of the countries that had laws expelling the Romany from their borders between the 16th and 19th centuries. A lot of the time, the Romany didn’t take the hint and came back — they could then be killed, shipped off in forced migrations to colonies in North and South America, Brazil or Australia. The practice and rationale of sending people you don’t like or want around to your own colonies sounds a little screwy, but the Europeans apparently figured it was better than having them on the outskirts of town.
Sometimes a country would decide to “rescue” the Romany from their lifestyle and make them “respectable” folks — without consulting the Romany on the matter, of course. In 18th century Hungary, Romany were made to settle and farm, and Rom children were taken from their families to learn new trades. The Romany language was outlawed, as was their music (except on holidays!) It didn’t take, however, and forced assimilations in Spain were also unsuccessful.
When the 20th century rolled around, things didn’t get any better for the romany — it didn’t help that Europe was clearly a mess in that era. The Nazis, who didn’t much like anyone that wasn’t them, had it in for the Romany from the start, even though the Romany were already subject to discriminatory laws in Germany. They were required to register with officials, prohibited from traveling freely, and frequently sent to forced-labor camps. The Nazis kept these laws in place and added to them, making the Romany subject to forced sterilizations and other horrifying racist laws.
Here in the United States, anti-Gypsy laws were on the books at one time or another in Mississippi, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, Indiana, Georgia and Maryland. In the late 19th century, Romany were even specifically barred from immigrating to the U.S. The Romany aren’t as persecuted today as they were in the past, but stereotyping still exists. Today, if you say that someone “gypped” you — meaning cheated or deceived you — You’re using a racial slur. “Gyp comes from “gypsy.” Some people admire their nomadic, property-eschewing style as a type of independence, but generally, that’s not the case….
Living here in West Virginia, we have a group known as the Hillbilly Gypsies. They formed in 2001 in Morgantown and have been performing their own brand of old time bluegrass and original mountain music ever since. So maybe Gypsies get a bad rap — probably because they’re different….sound familiar? But maybe they’re on to something — they say Gypsies do not like to stay They only come to go away. — 30 —
It wasn’t on my New Year’s Resolution list, but I started something on January 1 that I didn’t think I’d continue very long…. but here it is nearing the middle of May and there has not been one day this year that the news program that we watch on TV hasn’t mentioned at least one mass shooting. A number days, there has been more than one shooting in the news.
I acknowledge that I’m a curmudgeon, but I just can’t understand why this trend doesn’t seem to bother people. The government wants to label all sorts of things a “crisis,” but for some reason all these people being shot on a daily basis doesn’t qualify as a crisis.
The newscasters usually say something like we are all shocked that a mass murder occurred when someone with a disturbing social media history used a semiautomatic rifle, that was obtained legally, to commit a horrific mass murder. Seems like I hear those almost exact same words at least several times a week.
Clearly nothing can be done to prevent these tragedies, so congress will probably continue to offer thoughts and prayers to the victims….. — 30 —
Two score and 7 years ago, we were engaged in a by-centennial celebration of the United States. The world will little note, nor long remember that celebration, but it can never forget that it was also the year Kelly was born.
My apologies to Abe, but if you’re good at math, you know I’m talking about 1976 — the year of America’s bi-centennial celebration and the year our daughter Kelly was born.
I won’t mention her age — I’ll leave that as an exercise for the readers — but happy birthday to the best daughter ever!! — 30 —
Today’s topic is one that came up during a winter golf discussion maybe two or three years ago. Since it was a foreign topic to some of the “golfers,” I decided to talk about it. As I said, that was a number of years ago, but I guess late is better than never….
The name Medicine Wheel may seem like a strange name today, especially considering what comes to mind when we think about medicine. But to the Native Americans, medicine means spiritual and mysterious. These “wheels” are an intricate part of their spirituality and connection to the Earth and sky.
Medicine Wheels have been used for centuries. Hundreds of stone medicine wheels can be found throughout the U.S. and Canada. The oldest known one (in Alberta, Canada) is estimated to be over 5,000 years old. One of the largest and best-preserved is the Bighorn Medicine Wheel in Wyoming.
The Medicine Wheel (also called the Sun Dance Circle or Sacred Hoop) is an ancient and sacred symbol used by many tribes. It signifies Earth’s boundary and all the knowledge of the universe.
To the untrained eye, the Medicine Wheel might seem like a simple circle. But for many tribes, including the Great Sioux Nation, the Medicine Wheel holds a much deeper meaning. It’s shape is a circle, but the accompanying lines, the feather and the wheel’s four directions combine to mean so much more. It is a sacred symbol used to represent all knowledge of the universe. The Medicine Wheel is a symbol of hope — and a movement toward healing for those that seek it. The circle of the Medicine Wheel represents the sacred outer boundary of the Earth (as I mentioned, often called the Sun Dance Circle or the Sacred Hoop.) Its circular shape represents the continuous pattern of life and death, the path of the sun and moon, the shape of the family home (the teepee,) the shape of the drum and other significant pieces of the Sioux, and other Indian, cultures. The circle plays a role in many Native American beliefs and traditions.
Both the horizontal and vertical lines represent the sun’s and man’s sacred paths. The crossing of the two lines in the middle of the circle indicates the center of the Earth. It’s not always included in a Medicine Wheel, but when it is, the eagle feather is a sign of the Great Spirit’s power over all. Typically, when someone is presented with a Medicine Wheel with an attached eagle feather, it is to signify a great accomplishment, such as a graduation ceremony or some other momentous life event. Different tribes interpret the Medicine Wheel differently in terms of direction and color association. Each of the Four Directions (west, north, east and south) are typically represented by a distinctive color, usually black, red, yellow, and white. The Four Directions can also represent the four seasons of spring, summer, fall and winter or the four elements of water, air, earth and fire or the four life stages of birth, childhood, adulthood and elder — and so on.
There is a lot of variation in the construction of the wheels — there is no set number of spokes — some wheels have one spoke that is longer than the rest — with, apparently, some astronomical significance in the direction it points. In some wheels the spokes start from the center and go just to the outer ring, but with some they go out past the outer ring. Some wheels have spokes that start at the outer ring and radiate out from there.
In 1977 an astronomer named John Eddy proposed that some of the wheels had astronomical alignments and suggested that some wheels had spokes pointing to certain stars at certain times of the year, and otherwise marked specific days of the year like the solstices. But no matter…. Medicine Wheels are another Native American tradition, like Dream Catchers and Talking Sticks that are interesting, but more importantly, worth preserving — 30 —.
May 6 — In 2021 I was bemoaning the fact that even though we’d been married for 49 years, it was not considered a “special” anniversary. And now here it is 2023 and I’m bemoaning the fact that in spite of being married for fifty one years, according to the “experts,” it’s nothing special — it just counts as another year of being married. But I suppose rules are rules and if the experts don’t think it’s special, it must not be. So today’s blog is to my wife of 51 years….
Although 51 years have passed, some aspects of our lives will never change, they just become stronger through all the smiles — and a few tears. May this be a very special anniversary as we look back on all the happy memories we’ve shared in our marriage together. Happy Anniversary! — 30 —
Both the readers of this blog know that Valentine’s Day is a day that we avoid restaurants — we usually go out for Valentine’s Day, but the day before or the day after — not on February 14. Today is another one of those holidays that we tend to avoid restaurants — especially, Mexican Restaurants. Today is Cinco de Mayo — but we hit the Mexican restaurants before or after May 5, to avoid the crowds.
But I do like Cinco de Mayo — it’s a great excuse to drink margaritas…. not that you need a special day for that, but it just seems to be more fun if you’re celebrating something….. Cinco de Mayo is one of those holiday I never heard of when I was growing up — and there were a number of Mexican restaurants around where I lived.
But this day is about more than drinking tequila — it actually has deep-seeded roots in Mexican history. The popular belief is that Cinco de Mayo is Mexican Independence Day — of course, that’s not true. Mexican Independence Day is September 16th, not May 5th. May 5th is the anniversary of the 1862 Battle of Puebla. During that battle the guerrilla troops of General Ignacio Seguin Zaragoza fought off Napoleon’s troops during the Franco-Mexican War. The battle for the town of Puebla was an unexpected victory for the Mexican soldiers, marking a decisive win against the French invaders.
The popularity of Cinco de Mayo in America can probably be attributed to Franklin D. Roosevelt. Roosevelt enacted the “Good Neighbor Policy,” which was meant to improve relations with Latin America countries and communities. Because of this policy, Cinco de Mayo began to pick up steam in the 1950s and 60s. Los Angeles has the biggest Cinco de Mayo celebration — even bigger than the festival in the Mexican city of Puebla. The Los Angeles party is called Fiesta Broadway and has been a huge celebration since the 1990s.
I don’t think you could have Cinco de Mayo without tequila — 47% of all drinks ordered on Cinco de Mayo are margaritas and tequila sales usually double during the week leading up to the holiday. It’s interesting that long ago, tequila couldn’t be enjoyed by all Mexican people. Centuries ago, Aztec priests used to make a milky beer-like drink from the agave plant called pulque. Only the priests could consume this precursor of tequila.
The traditional dish eaten in the town of Puebla on their big holiday is mole poblano. Invented in the late 17th century, mole is a thick sauce made with chocolate, chili peppers, and other spices. I’ve never had the sauce over turkey legs, but apparently, traditionally, that’s the way to do it.
According to what I’ve read, ten states consume more tequila than the others — New York, Ohio, Georgia, Florida, Illinois, Colorado, Nevada, California, Arkansas and Texas. This year will be the 161st year of celebrating Cinco de Mayo — cheers!! — 30 —
I suppose I should start off with “May the 4th” be with you…. but you’ll probably hear that enough today.
Tomorrow, besides being Cinco de Mayo, brings this month’s Full Moon. May’s full Flower Moon will reach peak illumination at 1:36 p.m. (EDT) but will be below the horizon at that time,
May’s Flower Moon name shouldn’t come as any surprise — flowers start to bloom across North America during the month of May. The name “Flower Moon” is attributed to Algonquin peoples. So May’s Moon generally describes the arrival of spring….the Cree names Budding Moon and Leaf Budding Moon celebrate the awakening of local flora. The name Planting Moon (Dakota, Lakota) marks the time when seeds should be started for the farming season ahead.
Some moon names come from the activities of animals during the spring… the Cree names Egg Laying Moon and Frog Moon, as well as the Oglala term Moon of the Shedding Ponies are all names that indicate warmer weather is on the way. As I’ve said many times before, a lot of our family members believe there is something magical or at least mysterious about a full Moon. Of course a lot of people believe that and full moons have spawned folklore for centuries, so just remember…. Clothes washed for the first time in the Full Moon will not last long — but — the Full Moon is an ideal time to accept a proposal of marriage. And this year, the Full Moon will light your way home from those Cinco de Mayo parties…. — 30 —
We recently had to replace the passenger side mirror on one of our cars. The mirror cast almost $1,000!! Cars, just like about everything else, have gotten more complicated over the years. There was a time when cars were simpler and didn’t have lots of parts, but modern cars have an unbelievable number of parts, including all sorts of electronic components for powering high-tech accessories.
Today, cars are more complex, and have many parts that you can see and many more that are completely hidden. Just thinking about the passenger door on our car that just had the mirror replaced…. it contains parts to control the windows, locks, side mirrors, plus all the pieces for the door latches and handles. I read somewhere that the average car today is built with about 30,000 parts — some of these are small nuts and bots and some parts are much larger, like the engine block.
So why are parts for cars so expensive? Why did a “simple” mirror cost us almost $1,000? I suppose there are a lot of legitimate reasons, like rising costs affect just about everything — car parts are no different, tight supply chain problems, higher labor costs, people don’t buy parts very often, so there may be a storage fee, maybe parts cost more because more people are doing DIY repairs to save money, the parts are more complex for todays cars, some car parts are proprietary and are patented, and unless you are installing the part yourself, there’s an associated labor cost to go along with it.
I read all the time about cars being stolen and then being sold for their “parts.” I’m beginning to see why. If you look at car thefts, for the most part, when a car is stolen for profit — not just to take a joy ride — valuable parts are removed from the car because they are worth more individually than collectively as a complete vehicle. Also, a complete vehicle is much easier to trace than an individual part from that car, so there’s less risk of getting caught….
But again, I’ve strayed a little from the original subject…. what I was thinking when I started writing was that if you bought a car in as many pieces as possible, it would cost over a million dollars. That’s probably a bad guess on my part but my extensive research found one estimate that it would cost $125,000 to buy parts for a car that would sell for $20,000. Obviously the data was a little dated — I’m not sure you can buy a new car today for $20,000…. Anyhow, I’m glad we got the mirror replaced — I’ve always been told that the best car safety device is a rear-view mirror with a cop in it….. — 30 —
Today is May Day — it occurs annually on May 1!! May Day celebrates the return of spring and the day has its own traditions like flower baskets and maypoles and I hope you remembered to wash your face in the dew this morning for good luck.
Shepherdstown is one of the few places in the United States that still celebrate May Day. This year, Shepherdstown celebrated on April 29 with a celebration of the coming of summer with revelry to wake up the Earth from its winter slumber and induce it to fertility by singing, dancing, waving ribbons, clashing sticks, carrying wands or garlands of green and the ringing of bells. Many of Shepherdstown’s activities originated from traditional British customs. The maypole, as always, was set up on the McMurray lawn just after the sun rose.
In case you’re interested, here’s a bit of the history of May Day. The day has its roots in astronomy. Traditionally, it was the halfway point between the spring equinox and the summer solstice. In ancient times, this was one of the Celtic cross-quarter days, which marked the midway points between the (four) solstices and equinoxes of the year.
As with many early holidays, May Day was related to agriculture. Springtime activities filled with song and dance celebrated the sown fields starting to sprout. Cattle were driven to pasture, special bonfires were lit, and doors of houses — and livestock — were decorated with yellow May flowers. In the Middle Ages, the Gaelic people celebrated the festival of Beltane. Beltane means “Day of Fire.” People created large bonfires and danced at night to celebrate.
May Day has a long history and tradition in England, some of which eventually came to America. Children would dance around the maypole, holding onto colorful ribbons. People would “bring in the May” by gathering wildflowers and green branches, weaving floral hoops and hair garlands, and crowning a May king and queen.
As I mentioned, Shepherdstown alway has a maypole — originally, the maypole was a living tree chosen from the woods with much merrymaking. Ancient Celts danced around the tree, praying for the fertility of their crops and all living things. For younger people, there was the possibility of courtship. If a young woman and man paired by sundown, their courtship continued so that the couple could get to know each other and, possibly, marry 6 weeks later on June’s Midsummer Day. This is how the “June wedding” became a tradition.
In the Middle Ages, all villages had maypoles. Towns would compete to see who had the tallest or best maypole. Over time, this Old English festival incorporated dance performances, plays, and literature, and people would crown a “May Queen” for the day’s festivities.
The strict Puritans of New England considered the celebrations of May Day to be licentious and pagan, so they forbade its observance, and the springtime holiday never became an important part of American culture as it was in many European countries.
I should probably mention that the term “Mayday!” is not related to the “May Day” spring festival — it comes from the French phrase “M’aidez!,” which means “Help me!” If you hear “Mayday!” repeated three times, it is an urgent distress call. To signal that you need help but are not in a life-threatening situation, repeat the phrase “Pan-pan!” three times when calling for assistance. So goodbye April — Happy May Day! — 30 —
