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Photo: Robert Collins / Unsplash
June has always been one of my favorite months. I especially get swoony when I get a whiff of wisteria or lilacs. These fragrant clusters of purple blooms scream "It's JUNE!" and transport me to Jefferson Elementary School in Maplewood, New Jersey, where I grew up.
At the end of every school year, there was an assembly in the auditorium. Row upon row of hard-wooden mahogany folding seats that made creaky sounds when you opened them to sit down, then snapped closed when you stood up.
Once each of the grades -- from kindergarten through sixth -- was in their places, Miss Lorenz, the music teacher, walked to the front of the auditorium. She'd raise her arms like a conductor preparing an orchestra, then ssssh-hhh the restless students.
It was the sacred moment to sing the song we'd waited for all year, a snappy tune that marked the end of another school year and the beginning of summer. I can't find a recording of it anywhere, but here it is, in all its glory:
The June Song
Is there anything you want to learn,
Just ask us, we can tell.
We've studied hard for 10 long months,
And we know our lessons well!
But now we're getting ready for some days to have some fun,
For J-U-N-E always spells "Vacay-ay-shun."
So, it's hip, hip, hooray,
For the good vacation time,
An old straw hat, no shoes at all,
and a fishing pole and line.
The woods are calling to us,
YOOOOUU-HOOOOOO!!
And the brook repeats the tune,
The merry air,
Without a care,
Spells June! June! June!
