May Day--May Basket--May I?

The word "May" with its many possibilities is just waiting for someone to comment on it, so why not me? It is a word with chronological implications, political implications, functional implications and is also a word of high etiquette. Just think about it.

May Day is both a radio trouble call for someone in need of emergency help, but it is also a description of the day celebrated by Communist Governments across the world as their "Independence Day." I'm not sure that the two are connected, but it is, nevertheless interesting.

May Baskets, and the companion May Pole, are symbols in a way of the burgeoning springtime frolicing of young people in the flowers of the field. Handing out posies and candies and dancing delightfully around the brightly colored pole evoke images of hedonistic pleasure as well as innocent fun. Another contrast.

And we spend a great deal of time trying to teach our children to say those magic words, "May I." All to often we have become a culture of grabbing without asking; Of pushing ahead rather than waiting one's turn; of getting somewhere regardless of cost.

For those of us in the Faith Community, this last application of the word is perhaps the most important one. For the Faith Community may be the last place where we can recapture the civility that is wrapped up in "May I..." Can you think of another place?