May Bucket List: Living in the Early Summer Light

This May bucket list is a gentle guide to living closer to nature — through simple rituals, foraging, homemade drinks, and creative moments that bring both joy and calm into everyday life.

A natural living bucket list for May with ideas for springtime.

As the days stretch longer and the light lingers gently into the evening, May invites us into a smooth transition. This is the month where spring softens into early summer — where the air feels warmer, the first harvests begin, and nature offers its small, fleeting gifts. The returning birds, fresh herbs, spruce shoots, and blooming flowers all remind us to slow down and take part in the season, not rush through it.

I have gathered for you natural lifestyle inspiration in seasonal bucket lists that I am publishing monthly in the Natural Lifestyle Letters. You can join the email list to get them in your inbox when they are published.

Here is what is already published in this Natural Lifestyle bucket list series:

A sketch of migrating birds returning home as a one task to go see those in natural living bucket list for May.

Feel the Seasonal Shift in the Air

The spring mood has entered and you can savour the seasonal shift. Finally, all the birds return home. It is such a nostalgic moment to see the skein of birds migrating to the South, and now feel the joy and hope of warmth of summer that they carry flying back home.

Enjoy the Early Harvest

The prime time of the giant rhubarb leaves has arrived! When your kids have gotten tired of using the leaves as an umbrella, you can steal the stalks for a super pinky drink. This rhubarb juice recipe is my all-time favourite.

I’ll usually mix it with a splash of water, bubbly water, or even tonic for variety. Blend some early strawberries and pour in some of the rhubarb juice, serve with lemon slices and ice cubes, and summer can surely come!

A suggestion to make rhubarb juice in May and a sketch of two flute glasses clinging.

A sprig of herb and a suggestion to harvest the first herbs in May Bucket List.

First Greens of Spring

The power of the sun keeps all the herbs growing! Harvest the baby leaves for salads, for homemade bread spreads, and of course for a hot cup of herbal tea. If you are just starting or already deep into herbal teas, wait for my email: In May, I’ll be sharing my 5 favourite herbs for your tea garden, whether it is in an actual garden, balcony, or a windowsill!

Foraging as a Natural Lifestyle Habit

The force of nature is incredible. Every year, even the evergreen trees give something to be amazed by. Make daily walks into forest to see what has come out already and foraging becomes a natural lifestyle habit. The spruce shoots are an intriguing ingredient that, here in the North, we use for seasoning game, mixing with the salt or with vodka to make tinctures like cough syrup. I use it to season sugar and (you guessed it right) in teas!

Here, every man’s right to forage ends in trees, so make sure to check with the landowner if you can collect them – if you don’t have a forest of your own.

The spruce shoot time goes by rather quickly, so collect what you can in one go. I regularly freeze what I don’t use right away. Some dry the spruce shoots, but I rather use them fresh for the amazing scent!

Foraging as a natural lifestyle habit to do in May Bucket List with spruce shoot sketch.

A flower wreath is a May Bucket List task with a flower wreath sketch.

Flowers to Decore Home and to Use in the Kitchen

First flowers have already been blooming, since the weather has started to warm up.

Depending on which side of the world you live on, the lilacs start to bloom soon, and they are beautiful and amazing materials for daily flower wreaths, flower syrups, and even to add to the ice cubes! Serve with the rhubarb juice, and every little princess is stunned by the beauty of this spring beverage.

Dandelions can be a pain in the garden, but they are also amazing allies in the kitchen. Pick the young leaves for salads or for dandelion tea and use the flower buds for stunning flower crowns or, better yet, to make homemade dandelion honey (vegans ahoy!) with a hint of lemon.

A dandelion flower and plant sketch with a suggestion to make dandelion honey in May.

A sketch of a wooden box with an idea on enjoying the simple wood works in spring time to add to one's May Bucket List.

Get Creative and Crafty

With the amazing energy that spring carries, a small-scale woodwork creation starts to feel tempting. Try out these DIY repurposing ideas, with no carpentry skills needed. And if you want that amazing ebonized finish, use the homemade wood stain with one of the key ingredients being tea, of course.

More DIY Ideas

What Goes to Your Natural Living Bucket List This May?

Are you a crafter or a wanderer? Do you enjoy gazing at the fields to see the returning birds? What is your favourite way to spend time this May? Let me know in the comments at the end of this post!