Wind and rain weren’t enough to keep people away from the Halifax Common yesterday to take part in Mudder’s Day.
The Mudder’s Day festival was designed to celebrate motherhood, as well as the Earth (hence the “mud” in the name) and the start of the growing season. But strong winds and at times heavy rain threatened to stop the festival before it began.
“We got here this morning and the wind was insane and the rain was insane,” said organizer Elisabeth Oakham. “We thought, if nothing else, we’ll just hang out and get to know each other a little better.”
But while the weather limited the festival in size, people kept showing up to take part.
“Nobody’s really letting the weather get them down,” said Oakham. “The whole tagline has been this is a “make your own” festival. That has really come out through the weather. We’ve had to improvise everything and make it our own.”
Among the features were “the red tent” sponsored by the Midwifery Association of Nova Scotia, which provided a forum for people to talk about issues of birth and motherhood. There was a tent — known as a yurt — dedicated to discussing community design and urban planning. There was also a teepee for drumming, singing and telling stories.
The festival also featured information on growing and gardening, live music and free organic food.
Nicole Hill, 22, battled the weather to get to the festival from Dartmouth. She couldn’t spend Mother’s Day with her own mother, so she figured this was the next best thing. She said the weather even added to the experience.
“It makes the whole thing better. Whenever you struggle for something you get more satisfaction out of it,” Hill said.
-paul.mcleod@metronews.ca
