SAN DIEGO—As daughter Harriet, who lives in Portland, explains, the following selection from Hal Wingard's works focuses on "Celebrating Seasons, Simchas, and Shades of Love..." She notes that on Saturday, October 24, Hal's granddaugher Sara Schiff will become a bat mitzvah, and adds: "We'll all be missing Dad as we celebrate Sara's Bat Mitzvah this weekend in L.A. Simchas and sadness will go hand in hand." To hear other songs in Hal's collection, please click here. To hear the audio of those below, click on the title above the lyrics.

#56 -- Leaves of Amber, Leaves of Brown
#192 -- It's a Great Day (I, II)
#158 -- Colors of Love


#56, Leaves of Amber, Leaves of Brown

Leaves of amber, leaves of brown,
Wait for winds to help you down!
You are tired and cannot stay.
Winds will help you on your way.
Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh.

Autumn winds will softly blow,
Rock you gently to-and-fro,
Whisper songs with soothing sound,
Gently float you to the ground.
Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh.

Leaves of amber, leaves of brown,
Wait for winds to help you down!
You are tired and cannot stay.
Winds will help you on your way.
Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh.

(c) 2009 Estate of Hal Wingard; January 8, 1979



#192, It's A Great Day

Hey. . . !
I gotta say:
It's a great day!
I want you to know.

Ho. . . !
See the sun glow!
So apropos.
It's a great day!

The day's so great I wanna
Sing and loudly shout:
"Bat Mitzvah . . . Avlana!"
That's what the day's about.

Hey. . . !
I gotta say:
It's a great day!
I want you to know.

As mistress of the Bima,
Haftorah was first-rate.
That you're a top Bat Mitzvah
There's no one can debate.

Hey. . . !
I gotta say:
It's a great day!
I want you to know.


Go to the top of right column

It's a great day, Avlana.
I know you're feeling good.
Today's the day we honna
Your new-found womanhood.

Ho. . . !
See the sun glow!
So apropos.
It's a great day!

(c) 2009 Estate of Hal Wingard; To Avlana, in hona of her Bat Mitzvah. October 29, 1989, Sunday Morning

It's A Great Day (II)
Alternative lyrics

Hey. . . !
I gotta say.
It's a great day!
I want you to know.

Ho. . . !
See the sun glow!
So apropos.
It's a great day!

The sun is up there winkin'
With smiles that all can see.
And I know what he's thinkin':
He's happy just for me.Hey. . . !
I gotta say.
It's a great day!
I want you to know.

The day is bright and sunny,
Because at last I'm free.
Not one cent alimony!
That's in the court decree.

Ho. . . !
See the sun glow!
So apropos.
It's a great day.


(c) 2009 Estate of Hal Wingard; To make broader use of the melody, these words were written Nov. 8, 1989, while sitting at a bus stop on Polk Street in San Francisco, killing time before seeing the film Dead Poets' Society.



#158, The Colors of Love

Pink is the color of love at first sight.
Blue is for love worn with age.
Black is the color of love turned to hate.
Red is for love in a rage.

Life would be boring if love should be drab
And lacking in colorful hues.
Be grateful that life shows a rainbow of love,
With so many colors to choose.

Green is the color of love that's gone bad.
Purple is love overdone.
Grey is the color of love that's run out.
Yellow is loving for fun.

Life would be boring if love should be drab
And lacking in colorful hues.
Be grateful that life shows a rainbow of love,
With so many colors to choose.

(c) 2009, Estate of Hal Wingard; February 23, 1983

**

Hal Wingard died May 25, 2009 at age 83 in San Diego. He was an educator who specialized in methodologies for foreign language teaching and had served on the California State Curriculum Commission. His wife, Eileen, a retired symphony violinist and occasional contributor to San Diego Jewish World, survives him, along with three daughters and a son.