I’ve heard for years that the pineapple is a symbol, especially in Hawaiian culture, used to give one’s guests a hearty “Welcome!”  A pineapple in your entry hall or used in your tablescape can indicate more than just a liking for tropical décor. 

Recently, however, a friend told me of another custom.  It seems that when you’ve had house guests and enjoyed their company for just about as long as you can stand it, you leave a pineapple in their room.  It’s meant to imply, more or less, “Here’s a lovely parting gift, because it’s time for you to go!”

The latter is a fabulous idea as a mannerly way to avoid conflict or hurt feelings.  Of course, it does little good and merely provides a nutritious snack if your house guests haven’t heard of the custom.  I promise that this month’s First Friday Freebie is meant to welcome you to Midwest Storyteller and to invite you to stay as long as you like!

This pineapple from Hobby Lobby, at 10 inches tall and 5 inches wide, will be a great addition various styles of décor, including farmhouse styles, due to its neutral color and weathered appearance.  A shabby bit of metal art that sits close to the wall or nestles into the back of a bookshelf, it’s a great way to welcome guests to your home. It’s shown in the photo above hanging on my fence, so it could also welcome guests to your back yard.

I suppose you could let it make a sudden appearance on the nightstand should you have some guests who linger a bit long, but I’ll leave that up to you.

To enter to win the metal pineapple décor, all you need to do is “Leave a Comment” on this post, saying, “I welcome First Friday Freebies!”  You’ll need to do that before midnight TONIGHT, August 2^nd, 2019!  Important:  Once you’ve entered, you MUST keep checking the email address you used to subscribe or you may not know you’ve won and have to forfeit your free gift.

All my Freebies occur on the First Friday of each month and last for one day only, so share with all your friends and family TODAY through social media, send them the link in an email or just plain tell them, “Hey!  It’s Freebie Day!”    

Good intentions will not help you enter to win before midnight tonight so you had better navigate to the comment section now before you forget!

First Friday Freebies are for email SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.  You can subscribe by going to the right sidebar or use the menu to navigate to the “Contact” page and subscribe to Midwest Storyteller if you haven’t done so already.  Confirming your subscription through the confirmation email you’ll receive is absolutely necessary, so don’t forget that!

Use the Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest icons on this page to help you share with friends.

See past gifts and their winners on my “Freebies” page.

Remember, a winner will be chosen at random from those subscribers who enter before midnight tonight by leaving a comment which says, “I welcome First Friday Freebies!”

I send Freebies to any winner who lives within the continental United States.  For the complete First Friday Freebie rules, CLICK HERE. 

Glitches happen.  If you subscribe and do not receive a confirmation email for some reason, please email me and let me know at barb@midweststoryteller.com

Enjoy this last full month of summer and prepare yourself!  I have a couple of things I’d like to tell you about my Life With Smuffy.