May, 2012

"Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And Summer's lease hath all too short a date;"

So runs one of Shakespeare's most romantic sonnets. And indeed the weather remains unpredictable. No sooner did we have a local hose-pipe ban imposed than it rained pretty convincingly after Easter. That worked wonders for my allotment but the sun still seemed to contain very little actual warmth.

Most people are familiar with the saying "Ne'er caste a clout till May is out." However I feel sure that very few people know what it means.

In Old English a clout is a blow to the head but it is also a clod of earth, or cream, or it is a layer of clothing. That last definition is where our saying comes from. In other words "Don't take off a layer of clothing until May is out." And I'm afraid the word May is a little ambiguous too. It is probably not the month but the Hawthorn bush, May blossom. We've certainly seen plenty of that this year for weeks now. So really our old English saying amounts to not trusting the weather to warm up until about now. Well even that would seem a little doubtful to me.

In this age it is amazing what odd things and people we are asked to put our trust in, and not just about the weather. I'm sure you know as well as I do that "Trust in the Lord" has been the cry of believers way back to the ancient book of Proverbs and beyond. Even more sensible are the words of Jesus that begin "who can add a single hour to their life by worrying?"

So while my mind is dwelling on Old English I can sing away merrily on my bike that familiar hymn that ends:-

"Oh thou who changest not, abide with me."

It keeps me cheerful while I'm dodging the showers!

Rev'd Christopher Wood, Rector.