The Society of Bud Kissers
The Society of Bud Kissers was founded in 1482 and thus has a long and distinguished history of welcoming spring. Its members operate individually and as part of a group, depending upon temperament and location. Their principal job is to welcome spring by, as the name suggests, kissing the emergent buds of leaves and flowers. The greater the amount of kisses a plant receives, the more gloriously it will flourish that year.
Maisie is the head of the River Great Ouse chapter, and has been bud kissing for most of her life. She was first welcomed as a bud kisser by her grandmother as part of her third birthday ceremonies. Always on the lookout for new members, her grandmother’s keen eye observed Maisie turn down a kiss from Thomas and instead lay a fat one on a daisy. It was therefore foreseen, from an early age, that Maisie would one day lead a chapter of Bud Kissers herself.
Photo of a single bud with some trees in the background.
That day has come and one of Maisie’s first tasks as a leader, is to recruit some new freelance Bud Kissers, as the River Great Ouse chapter is a little low. I said I’d assist, so please find the Person Specification of a Bud Kisser below:
Essential:
✓ Heart full of whimsy
✓ Abundance of kisses on lips
✓ Love of plants
✓ Tender gentleness
✓ Highly observant
Desirable:
✓ Ability to kiss in even the strongest of winds and rains
✓ Ability to spot a struggling plant who might need more kisses
✓ Willingness to sing love songs to budding plants
Photo of a single bud with some scrubby plants and a path in the background.
Whilst bud kissing is quite a time consuming job, it only happens for a few months a year, so aspirants can simply think about temporarily reorganising their affairs for next year. It’s obviously not an onerous job, as it fills one’s days with delight. It is certainly something I am seriously considering as a seasonal, but life-long, career and will likely add it to my 10,000 Services once I’ve gained more experience. Maisie said that many Bud Kissers also have second jobs as Flower Sniffers in the summer; some even take third jobs as Leaf Kickers in the Autumn-Winter period. All of this sounds mighty fine to me.