Christmas song don we now our gay apparel

Deck the Halls : Lyrics

Deck the halls with boughs of holly, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 
Tis the season to be jolly, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 

Don we now our gay apparel, 
Fa la la, la la la, la la la. 
Troll the ancient Yule tide carol, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 

See the blazing Yule before us, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 
Strike the harp and join the chorus. 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 

Follow me in merry measure, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 
While I tell of Yule tide treasure, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 

Fast away the old year passes, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 
Hail the new, ye lads and lasses, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 


Sing we joyous, all together, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la. 
Heedless of the wind and weather, 
Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Deck the Halls – Christmas Carol Music and lyrics

Say you're an elementary school song teacher singing Christmas carols, specifically "Deck the Halls," with your class and every time the lyric "don we now our gay apparel" comes up, the kids look at each other and giggle hysterically because the word "gay" is super comical to eight year olds. What do you do? Do you take control of your class like an experienced educator or do you, in an try to curb the outbursts, adjust the lyrics of a year old song and replace the word "gay" with "bright"?

A Traverse City, Michigan elementary school song teacher made the wrong selection by going with the latter. This angered parents took to the school's Facebook page (comments have since been removed and posting disabled) saying "By taking the word 'gay' out of 'Deck the Halls,' you are making it a big deal. One word can have diverse meanings." Happily, the outrage did lead to the restoration of the lyric but I gamble this particular music teacher will just side-step the tune from now on, which is cute sad. Kids shouldn't be robbed of Deck the Halls, damn it.

Assistant superintendent Ja