One More Day

There’s one more day of our Vacation Bible School. One more day of cooking and serving in the kitchen to feed the different kids. Bright eager eyes and hungry bellies line up along the kitchen counter, waiting to be served. They can make their selection from the items offered, some kids wanting only a couple different foods choices, while others wanting everything. Many coming back for seconds and possibly thirds before the food and the time for lunch are gone. The children are all hustled out to the auditorium in a final assembly before they are dismissed to go home.

I was able to stay with my granddaughter Thursday morning before Bible school started and then to drive her to the Bible school. While we were waiting at her house, I helped her memorize some Bible verses. As each child memorizes several Bible verses, they are able to select a prize. Sometimes she has difficulty with her spelling words or with memorization. But she has the talent to play the piano by ear after hearing a tune played only once. She loves to sing and is always singing even in the car. She’s just like her mother was at that age.

An idea hit me, “Why can’t I get her to sing the verses?” It worked. We started with a verse that she hadn’t tried before and after about ten or twelve times singing Romans 6:23, she had it memorized and was able to say her verses and able to earn a prize.

My mom, Sybil Beck would sing a chorus or a line from a song that paralleled something my brother, sister, or I said. I guess I’ve inherited a similar trait, especially while I was still working at Frick Hospital, Mt. Pleasant, Pennsylvania, but it wasn’t that I always sang a ditty. Most times it was either telling a story or joke that hopefully lightened situations or gave my fellow workmates a reason to smile.

My granddaughter’s great-uncle David has the ability to play a tune once he has heard it, playing the music perfectly on a guitar, banjo, or mandolin, but he can’t read music. He’s of Scottish heritage and when I last heard, he was teaching himself to play the bagpipes. He bought the blowpipe and chanter, hoping to eventually purchase the more expensive bagpipe parts later.