This is our grand-daughter Daisy, in the center, top, singing a solo at Discovery Baptist Church, in Gig Harbor. (Thanks to Kathy for the photo.) She comes by singing very naturally, and has a beautiful voice. From as long as I can remember, Daisy would sing in the bathtub while bathing, sing as we walked through forests on hikes, and sing while she played with her dolls. Of course, if Daisy wasn't singing, she'd be talking, and so 'being vocal' was always a strong trait for her. I can remember taking Daisy on most of our canoe paddles from age 4 to 8, when I was a regular babysitter for her, and we cared for her every weekend while her dad worked.
Now, I enjoyed those paddles as a 'getaway' from the noise and demands of my busy household and my job. It was 'come-down time', and I wanted to have peace and quiet! So, one day, we bundled her up in a quilt, and put her in a big plastic container that fit in the middle of the canoe. We gave her a little paddle of her own and also a fishing pole with the hope she would remain occupied along the way. But, she wasn't catching fish, and paddling became boring - she wanted to chat the entire length of our glide.
I'd say, "Daisy, lets be quiet now, and listen to the birds." Two seconds later, she'd have a question about the birds, then more questions, and if I didn't answer, she'd turn around and ask her Grandpa! George would whisper, "Daisy, no more talking, just enjoy the view. Save your questions for later."
Our strategies never worked, and pretty soon I got sidetracked counting the seconds between her silence and the startup of her chatter. I found myself counting, one-two-threeeeeee, four, fiveeeeeee, and then presto, she'd be talking again.
I had to figure out a compromise. I really wanted to focus on our canoeing with a minumum of distraction, so I told Daisy to sing. To get her started, I sang many songs from my childhood, Christmas carols, songs from Snow White, and from the voice lessons I had as a child. (I took those for ten years!) Among many songs, we sang "Some Day My Prince Will Come", "This Little Light of Mine (I'm gunna let it shine)", "My Favorite Things", and "I Can Sing a Rainbow" song:
"Red and yellow and pink and green, purple and orange and blue,
Why, I can sing a rainbow, sing a rainbow, sing a rainbow too.
Listen with your eyes, listen with your eyes,
And sing everything you see, you can sing a rainbow,
Sing a rainbow, sing along with me......"
And, we'd throw in more verses. I can remember canoeing around one lake, and we never stopped singing. When I'd tire, she'd keep on, singing everything she could think of. When that was done, she couldn't stop, and she started singing her questions, and the answers, and she sang everything she saw.
When she ran out of that, she sang her request for a snack ....... and, those were Daisy's voice lessons, in sunshine and rain, all over Puget Sound. It was a pleasant compromise. And, should you wish to tap your toes, and hum along, this is our rainbow song....imagine a grandma and her Daisy rounding corners singing what they see!This song, "He Keeps Me Singing", is for Daisy:
Though sometimes He leads through waters deep,
Trials fall across the way,
Though sometimes the path seems rough and steep,
See His footprints all the way.
