Marcia, Marcia, Marcia

I think I'll go for a walk outside now
the summer sun's callin my name
(I hear ya now)
I just can't stay inside all day
I gotta get out get me some of those rays
everybody's smilin
sunshine day
everybody's laughin
sunshine day
everybody seems so happy today
it's a sunshine day

I think I'll go for a walk outside now
the summer sun knows me by name
(he's callin me)
I gotta get out, gotta get out, gotta get away
I gotta get away, get away, get away, get away...
Into the sunshine day...

can't you dig the sunshine
Now it’s all but the same
can't you hear him callin your name?

Oh, I think I'll take a walk everyday now
the summer sun has shown the way to be happy now
I just can't stay inside all day
I gotta get out get me some of those rays...
everybody's smilin
sunshine day
everybody's laughin
sunshine day
everybody seems so happy today
it's a sunshine day

^{Lyricsfreak.com Songwriters: MCCARTHY, STEPHEN
It's A Sunshine Day lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, FRICON MUSIC COMPANY}

Happiness in the sun

Does this bring back memories? For some of you, it may. The Brady Bunch crew performed this song on ABC in 1973. I was nine years old. I loved the show, especially Marcia! Whatever Marcia was selling, I was buying. If she told me that the sun was calling my name and knew my name, I was going to listen (and who knew that the sun was a ‘him?’) I took her advice, a lot. After all Marcia told me that this was the way to be happy and who didn’t want to be happy? Every episode ended up great! The Brady’s had cornered the market on happiness, or seemingly so.

Mr. Sun

Well, that narrative is not quite true for everyone. No doubt that being outside in the sun has its benefits. For those of us who live in the northeast (which I do, now), nothing brightens the mood like a sunny day. Some of us need Vitamin D and a good dose of Mr. Sun helps with that. My point is that in 1988 I was not so happy with my yellow-orbed friend in the sky. I became disenchanted with him when I was diagnosed with melanoma years ago. I had to redefine our relationship. No longer did he seem like my buddy, who just wanted to spend time with me at the beach, in the backyard, or at a picnic. I became wary of him (still calling the sun a him because Marcia sang it and it must be so.) Was I being misled? Was Mr. Sun a bit passive-aggressive? I began to avoid those rays and the damage associated with them.

He’s hiding, but he’s there

But what about the days that Sir Sun is hiding from us? Are we still at risk? Are we still in danger? According to Janna Bardi with the Washington State Department of Health, we are. "It may be surprising that skin cancer is high in areas where rain and clouds dominate the sky for so many months of the year." Other agree, Dr. Peter Jenkin, a board-certified dermatologist in Seattle states that in order “to protect against skin cancer, sunscreen should be applied every day, regardless of weather. Around 80 percent of the sun's UV rays can pass through clouds and reflect off of surfaces like water.”¹

Lather up, Mr. Cloud is of little help

So, there you have it. Even when the sun is not out, he’s out. This seems to make sense because we can still see outside on cloudy days. He may be hiding, but he’s out in force and it seems that Mr. Cloud and his cloud friends are not much help. I must remind myself to apply sunscreen on cloudy days when I expect to be outside for extended periods. I have found that I do burn when no shadows are out and it’s overcast, especially at the beach. My experience aligns with recent reports. And what about Marcia? Well, I met her years ago when I was in college. I ran into Maureen McCormick (the actress who played Marcia) in Santa Monica, California, in the 1980’s. I thought she was super cool, but now I don’t really listen to her songs and I’m pretty sure that the sun has no gender.