PLEASE SING TO ME

Mother enjoyed singing and music. She sang with feeling, on key, in rhythm and remembered all the songs she had ever heard. Mother sang as she did her housework. She sang while she kneaded bread, baked pies and cakes, peeled the potatoes, tended the fire, mended clothing and swept the dust from the kitchen floor. Jenny liked the lyrics, the tunes and the rhythms and she liked the way the songs made her feel happy or sad or told interesting stories. When Mother sang, “In the Sweet By and By,” Jenny would almost cry and sometimes did. It was the song her Mother’s father Samuel had liked, and it was sung at his funeral after he died an untimely death from some undiagnosed ailment. Mother conveyed in her singing the sadness she still felt and Jenny thought about how she might feel if Mother or Daddy died. Mother sang Stephen Foster’s songs, and after she had heard many of these, Jenny understood how it must have been with the black people in the old South. When Mother sang her old high school songs, Jenny felt the mischievous carefree spirit in which they were sung by the young people. Mother sang Civil War songs, “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” Tenting Tonight,” “Oh, Shenandoah.” “The Vacant Chair,” and World War I songs, “It’s a Long Way to Tipperary,” “Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit Bag,” and “The Rose of No .Man’s Land.” She felt the stirring excitement and patriotism these war songs inspired and the sadness and sorrow about those soldiers who could never return to those who loved them. Some songs made Jenny want to dance, and Mother would take Jenny’s hands as they skipped around and around the kitchen singing, “Skip to My Lou,” or clapped and stomped to “Little Brown Jug.” Jenny felt the frivolity and naughtiness of the twenties when Mother sang, “Oh Hell, Oh Hell, Oh Helen I love You,” “Everybody’s Doin’ It,” and “I’ll Know What I’ll Do By and By.” There were songs about the Depression such as “Buddy, Can You Spare A Dime?” “Now’s The Time to Fall In Love,” Let’s Have Another Cup of Coffee,” that were currently being sung as this was the era in which they were living.

Mother could play the piano too, and when she had moments to spare, and if the parlor were warm enough, they would go to the upright and she would play and sing from the Golden Book of Songs, and The Everybody Sing Book. Jenny’s favorite from these was “My Grandfather’s Clock.” Mother had some sheet music from her girlhood when she had taken piano lessons from a young woman who was an accomplished pianist. Some of these sheets were of classical music. Jenny enjoyed these too, especially the dramatic parts, though she thought some of them were a bit long and was sorry that there weren’t any words.

Sweet Irish songs were lovely and Mother could also sing ”The Lorelei” and ”Silent Night" in German. You could get to know a whole rich wonderful world just from being in the kitchen and listening to your Mother sing.