HELLO JUNE !
Awww. June is here. I love summer and June brings summer . Pollen has long gone. Foliage and flowers are in full bloom . The trees look lush. The weather is warm during the day and breezy at night. I love riding the winding roads of Carolina in my convertible, just listening to the night sounds of Carolina.
And it is no wonder that June is the month of weddings. In fact, in the South, there is a saying,
“when you marry in June you’re a bride all your life, and the bridegroom gets a sweet-heart for a wife.”
June is also Black Music Month. Imagine that ! The music I grew up with. Good music and summertime just go together.
Think of a June night. Now think of the song “Summertime” by DJ Jazzy Jeff or the song “Hot Fun In the Summertime” by Sly and the Family Stone. Isn’t there something about those songs that makes a great summer night even better? That’s the essence of black music. As we say in Carolina, it is like a cool breeze on a warm night with a beer in your hand. That’s music !
And June is not complete with a stack of good summer reads. My latest find is The Summer’s End by Mary Alice Monroe . It is the last of the three part series of Lowcountry Summer. This series is could have been written about any Southern family. The first book is The Summer Girls and second is The Summer Winds. The series’ background is Sullivan Island , South Carolina and we read of a Grandmother who is on a mission. You know, we all have that special Grandmother who brings us back to our roots. It is a poignant and heartwarming story of three half sisters and their grandmother, who is determined to help them rediscover their southern roots and family bonds.
With great music and summer reads, and weddings each weekend to attend, it is time to start the special month of June.