May dazzles the eye with colour.
The bright new greens overwhelm after the grey of winter.
Beneath the woodland trees, a carpet of blue
And hedgerows bursting with the white of hawthorn.

The Mayday dancers welcome in the summer
And bless the crops that come with harvest time.
The dawn, now early, is met by birdsong
And the frantic day begins, to feed the newly hatching young.

A time of conflict? – to study for exams, or escape,
To breathe the freedom of summer evenings
With bat and ball and laughter,
Or cycle together down lanes, past farms
And fields now free of winter’s mud.

At last, winter coats are stored away
And bright clothes and bare arms and legs appear,
Pale and waiting for the sun to warm them
On beaches, empty for so long.

Our wells are dressed with all the flowers of Spring
And tell their stories at Whitsuntide,
While Morris Teams dance to ageless tunes,
Bedecked in bells and finery to mark their side.

In Derbyshire’s hills, ramblers take to the trails
And share the joys of freedom in the Peak.
Or throng the streets of Bakewell and Ashbourne
And take a drink outside when walks are done,
For now is Summer come!