Singing with Betty
Five-year-old Betty came skipping into my bedroom.
I sat her on the bed and said, "You stay here for a minute. I have something for you. "
I grabbed a children’s songbook which I keep close to my bed for reasons even I don’t know why. But there it is, right there with 10 other books that are currently on my mind.
I decided to see how long I could keep Betty there, just singing to her.
I grabbed my Sally Go Round the Sun book and opened it to any song, which just happened to be There were 3 Jolly Fishermen (… of “they all went down to Amerster [dam, dam, dam]” fame.
I just wanted to capture her before she got away on me.
She wanted to sing “Sally Go Round the Sun” which I don’t think is a very interesting song.
But she was willing to look through the whole book for that song.
She should have started with the first page, instead of near the middle, but eventually she found it, determined little thing.
And then I began drilling down, singing song after song, trying to find the hook in each song to keep her interested before going on to the next song.
We sang Sally go round the sun, Ring around the rosey, I wrote a letter to my love, Rig-a-jig-jig, Oats, peas beans and barley grow (I can remember my own mother teaching me that song and not being a farm girl, it didn’t make much sense to me), and Punchinello I had to use the sol-fa method and sight read that one, but Betty didn’t know I was working off the top of my head – as well, I worked her over on the last three notes which do not have the B flat that is present in the first phrase.
The we sang The mulberry bush (by this time I had to get up and dance in a circle with her – the song just demands it), Money see and monkey do ( I had to tell her about the monkey see / monkey do taunt – she didn’t get it, but she still sang), Round the mountain, two by two, Looby-loo, Here stands a red bird (I just love “rice, sugar and tea” though it makes no sense to me—must google that one), Did you ever see a lassie, When I was a baby (had to change the lyrics here – when the husband dies, everyone is happy and cheers– not appropriate for a 5 year old girl) and Betty stopped suddenly stopped singing saying she had to go find her mother. I guess they had been separated for long enough, or maybe she was on music overload. And there was a bit of a worry on her part that movie night (Hamilton) was going to beginning. Still, I kept Betty singing far longer than I thought I would be able to.
Miranda has a tape with many of these songs on it and she plays it when they are going somewhere in the van. An eternal loop, but Miranda playing it that way works for their grandmother, for the kids know all of those songs and when we come to one of them that is familiar to her, Betty calls out, “I know this one. It is a van song.”
Yup.
Imprinted on her brain from the van.
Arta
Five-year-old Betty came skipping into my bedroom.
I sat her on the bed and said, "You stay here for a minute. I have something for you. "
I grabbed a children’s songbook which I keep close to my bed for reasons even I don’t know why. But there it is, right there with 10 other books that are currently on my mind.
 |
| ... Betty with a wrapped braid in her hair ... |
I grabbed my Sally Go Round the Sun book and opened it to any song, which just happened to be There were 3 Jolly Fishermen (… of “they all went down to Amerster [dam, dam, dam]” fame.
I just wanted to capture her before she got away on me.
She wanted to sing “Sally Go Round the Sun” which I don’t think is a very interesting song.
But she was willing to look through the whole book for that song.
She should have started with the first page, instead of near the middle, but eventually she found it, determined little thing.
 |
| Look who is here, Punchinello funny fellow, What can you do, Punchinello, funny fellow, We can do it too, Punchinello, funny boy. |
We sang Sally go round the sun, Ring around the rosey, I wrote a letter to my love, Rig-a-jig-jig, Oats, peas beans and barley grow (I can remember my own mother teaching me that song and not being a farm girl, it didn’t make much sense to me), and Punchinello I had to use the sol-fa method and sight read that one, but Betty didn’t know I was working off the top of my head – as well, I worked her over on the last three notes which do not have the B flat that is present in the first phrase.
The we sang The mulberry bush (by this time I had to get up and dance in a circle with her – the song just demands it), Money see and monkey do ( I had to tell her about the monkey see / monkey do taunt – she didn’t get it, but she still sang), Round the mountain, two by two, Looby-loo, Here stands a red bird (I just love “rice, sugar and tea” though it makes no sense to me—must google that one), Did you ever see a lassie, When I was a baby (had to change the lyrics here – when the husband dies, everyone is happy and cheers– not appropriate for a 5 year old girl) and Betty stopped suddenly stopped singing saying she had to go find her mother. I guess they had been separated for long enough, or maybe she was on music overload. And there was a bit of a worry on her part that movie night (Hamilton) was going to beginning. Still, I kept Betty singing far longer than I thought I would be able to.
Miranda has a tape with many of these songs on it and she plays it when they are going somewhere in the van. An eternal loop, but Miranda playing it that way works for their grandmother, for the kids know all of those songs and when we come to one of them that is familiar to her, Betty calls out, “I know this one. It is a van song.”
Yup.
Imprinted on her brain from the van.
Arta
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