Ring around the Rosie

According to most interpretations in the world, people believe that the Nursery Rhythm "Ring around the Rosie" has to do with the Black death (Bubonic plague)

Ring around the Rosie

The Ring was a circular rash found around the inflamed lymph nodes on the neck.

A pocket full of posies 

people carried flowers in their pockets to ward off the odor of death and because it was believed bad air carried the disease and sweet flower smell could ward it off.

The Next part is told two different ways, 

Achoo achoo we all fall down

or

Ashes Ashes we all fall down

Both versions have been written , one to do with sneezing and spreading the disease the other was in reference to the ashes produced from burning the dead.

Falling down was of course falling down dead.

The website Snopes is saying that this is not the meaning of the Nursery Rhyme,  Because the first written account of it would have fallen with the second coming of the Black death, not the first in the 1300's. Snopes is also saying they don't know where the Nursery Rhyme came from.

For myself, I am always hard pressed to take someones denial of a meaning when they cannot indicate an alternative. And as far as the Rhyme showing up during the diseases second arrival and not the first doesn't really mean anything. Second or first plague the Rhyme would fit the issue, I don't remember the last verse saying "the second time around".

So for me, right or wrong, until someone can come up an alternative reasoning as to why it was created when all the phrases fit the reasoning. I'll stick with the Black Plague theory. 

Maybe we could have a third plague, then we can make up something new for children to sing.