SONGS OF MY GRANDMOTHER

On a hill far away....
 The Old Rugged Cross -Photo by Andy Rogers

The Old  Rugged Cross. I often sing this hymn, Its words and melody are embedded in my soul and  my spiritual DNA. As a small child, I heard this song several times a day by paternal grandma as she worked in the kitchen. There were others she sang, others I remember, but this one remains with me always.

The Old Rugged Cross. It was among a host of songs my sister recorded on the piano to play for my father when he was in the hospital - first very sick, then dying. He would listen --and smile as he listened, even as he slept. As a small child, he also heard this same song, several times a day.

The songs we heard as children carry knowledge  of our family, our community, our collective lives.

Heard again, songs can evoke smells, images, and feelings.

Heard again, sung again, these songs transport us to an earlier time, to childhood fun, to perfect memories.. to romantic moments.  They remind us of funerals, wedding, parties and other celebrations.

As I hum, as I sing, as  I work, I am back in my grandmother's kitchen eating homemade ice cream and drinking a hot toddy for a  sore throat.  I am in the living room watching Queen for a Day and General Hospital or  I am being tucked in bed under her homemade quilts.

As I sing, I am reminded of Grand Mothers: Poems, Reminiscences, and Short Stories About The Keepers Of Our Traditions edited by Nikki Giovanni.

In this treasury of memories, Giovanni has invited her friends, including some folks we know for their own writing, to share their meaningful moments, precious memories, fictional accounts,  and gathered wisdom from their grandmothers.


So we peek into the minds and grandmother memories of Gloria Naylor, Gwendolyn Brooks, Maxine Kong Kingston, Nikki Giovanni, and others whom we meet through their grandmother memories.

What do you remember about your grandmothers?
What songs did they sing?
What words of wisdom did they impart to you?
How are they embedded in your cultural and spiritual DNA?

I just finished reading Songs My Grandma Sang by Michael B. Curry, the newly elected  Presiding Bishop of my denomination, the Episcopal Church in the United States.

Bishop Curry revisits the spirituals and traditional hymns he heard as a child, extracting the life lessons and  wisdom found there,  reaping  the cultural history and theology planted in those words,  remembering the energy and spiritual  strength rising in the melodies.

Our grandmother sang life into our lives.

Our grandmothers did not sing only the songs of faith and the church.

Sometimes the songs they sang were the pop songs of their time, the songs played on the radio or heard in the juke joints and honky tonks. Pop and country singer Brenda Lee's first album, Grandma, What Great Songs You Sang, recognized this both in title and content.

What did  you learn about life from your grandmother's songs?
What did her songs teach you about faith?
How did the songs your grandmother sang teach you about history and culture?
How did they explain your family and community?

For additional thoughts on grandmothers, see my previous post.

Today's Deeper Writing Possibilities

Reflect and remember:

What do you remember about your grandmothers?
What songs did they sing?
What did  you learn about life from your grandmother's songs?
What did her songs teach you about faith?
How did the songs your grandmother sang teach you about history and culture?
How did the songs explain your family and community?
How are their songs embedded in your cultural and spiritual DNA?

Write a personal narrative or essay about a song (s) your grandmother sang.

Compose a hymn or song like the ones your are remembering. Write lyrics and create a melody..