Our May Memories

Tommy from Claremorris recalls singing of 'Flowers of the May' in the choir Sheila from Wicklow remembers washing her face in the dew of the grass to reduce freckles..Peggy from Lahardane talks about how on May Day it was frowned upon to put out the ashes or to borrow milk.

Catherine Flanagan a GMIT Social Studies graduate who completed a placement with CLAR IRD shared some May sayings with the residents.

Mary from Taugheen, Claremorris recalls making an altar made from turf and gathering primroses.

Kathleen from Mayo Abbey remembers that children took their shoes off from May Day and went barefoot to school.

Mary from Kildare recalls the custom of the May bush and collecting bluebells and primroses for the altar. She talks about putting wild flowers on the doorstep.

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The Lawn, Claremorris

Courtesy of Clár IRD

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The Lawn, Claremorris

Courtesy of Clár IRD

When visiting the Museum of Country Life during March this year, I heard about the May Memories collection project being run by the Education & Outreach Department and thought that it might be something fun and enjoyable to do with our elderly residents at The Lawn, Claremorris. The residents meet on Monday mornings for coffee and a social chat and always have stories to tell about when they were young.

So, with the help of Catherine Flanagan, Social Studies, GMIT and Claremorris Community Radio, we arranged a reminiscence session with a number of our residents. As well as chatting about May time and old customs, we played music that was popular when they were younger. This went down a treat as residents sang along and the songs seemed to help prompt memories of times gone by.Here you can play five tracks of the memories recorded and the songs we played for them that day.

We hope you enjoy listening!

Áine Carr, Coordinator, CLÁR ICH, Claremorris.