That first day of school!

Enveloped in a certain sultry haze

A pungent ripeness fills the air

I’ve got that old end-of-summer sad feeling

As my wife goes off to teach today:

It’s the first day of the new school year.

It takes me back in time

To a vivid image I have of my son:

Dressed and ready to start first grade,

Waiting anxiously, pencil box in hand,

One hour before the school bus was due.

And farther back yet to when I was a boy:

Dreading the end of summer vacation,

Haunted by the obnoxious back-to-school refrain

 Played nonstop by our first clothing store chain

Penetrating my denial like a dentist’s drill:

“It’s back to Robert Hall Again.”