As I peanut-buttered Gideon's "toastie" on Saturday morning, he demanded (in a special, sweet, two-year-old way) music. So I pulled my iPod out of my jackets inner pocket and began to scroll through artists. I knew what Gideon wanted: Veggie Tales. But I wasn't feeling like "Who built the ark?" this morning. Plus, I want Gideon to grow up somewhat cultured in music.
So, I asked Gideon what he wanted to listen to, except that Veggie Tales was not an option. So he opted for "Strength will rise..." which is not actually the title of a song or an artist but instead the first line to one of his favorite songs. Gideon was born during advent season, the season of waiting. I had begun to sing to him, at just days old, and my favorite song at the time was "Everlasting God." I'm not sure who originally wrote it, but the lyrics fit Advent so well...
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord
Wait upon the Lord, we will wait upon the Lord
Our God, He reigns forever
Our hope, our strong Deliverer
Anyways, Gideon loves it. So we listened to the Chris Tomlin version, which is okay (which is kind of how I feel about Chris Tomlin in general). While we listened, I decided to make myself a special breakfast. Some Pineapple Orange Banana juice, blended with yogurt and half of a cut up banana. Gideon laughed as the blender roared to life and spun the drink around. "Do it again!"
I poured it out into a festive summer glass, one that was made for sun tea or cool lemonade. I use it in the middle of winter as a defiance. It made be cold and snowy all around, the sleet may be turning everything to slush and mud, but I am bright as these lemon slices. Cold outside, happy inside.
"Everlasting God" ended and I was ready for a different song, so I switched to Brooke Waggoner. Courtney and I missed her in concert with Denison Witmer back in September, when we went on one of my favorite dates that I've had with her. We had walked into the basement of a college classroom building to find a dark, old auditorium. The two college activity council girls taking tickets didn't even know who was playing, for how long, or when it would start. By the time we had run to get dinner, at a local restaurant on the water, Denison Witmer was already 2 or 3 songs into his set. Courtney and I had been the oldest people in the audience by far, and there were only 40-50 people at maximum. We sat in the back row, held hands and sung along with the songs that we had loved when the other concert goers weren't even out of the single digits in age. That was a night for feeling happy inside.
I had remembered Brooke Waggoner's name from the concert though, looked her up on iTunes and downloaded an album, "Heal for the Honey." It's great, I really enjoy it, but I'm just now getting to know the songs. I'm just starting to understand the words, feel their meanings, and be able to recite them. My favorite melody was on the song "Tender Meaning," so I cued that one up for Gideon and I to listen to.
"We nailed a bunch of pictures onto the wall
Gideon bounced back and forth in his chair, I danced with my smoothie in one hand, kicking my feet out towards him and then back behind me like I was "skanking" to the Supertones. My arms windmilled in the air and Gideon smiled a sticky peanut butter smile. I learned the words the first time through the song, then replayed it. I sang right to Gideon, leaning in for a kiss on the nose in between verses.
And I couldn't help but think of the Jewish way of blessing God. Here I am, wonderful son, beautiful morning, tasty pineapple orange banana smoothie, dancing and singing... what more do I want from a beautiful God? So I decided to say some Jewish-style blessings in my joy.
I know that neither pineapple, nor orange, nor banana comes from a vine... but in the Jewish tradition I joyfully lifted up: Blessed are You, LORD, our God, King of the universe, who creates the fruit of the vine. Then I added one of my own: Blessed are You, LORD, our God, who has given me a joyous family.
God is good, and because he is, there are a lot of mornings and evenings that I truly can say I am happy inside. I pulled Gideon's highchair across the tile floor, gave him a kiss on top of the head, and then pushed repeat.
So, I asked Gideon what he wanted to listen to, except that Veggie Tales was not an option. So he opted for "Strength will rise..." which is not actually the title of a song or an artist but instead the first line to one of his favorite songs. Gideon was born during advent season, the season of waiting. I had begun to sing to him, at just days old, and my favorite song at the time was "Everlasting God." I'm not sure who originally wrote it, but the lyrics fit Advent so well...
Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord
Wait upon the Lord, we will wait upon the Lord
Our God, He reigns forever
Our hope, our strong Deliverer
Anyways, Gideon loves it. So we listened to the Chris Tomlin version, which is okay (which is kind of how I feel about Chris Tomlin in general). While we listened, I decided to make myself a special breakfast. Some Pineapple Orange Banana juice, blended with yogurt and half of a cut up banana. Gideon laughed as the blender roared to life and spun the drink around. "Do it again!"
I poured it out into a festive summer glass, one that was made for sun tea or cool lemonade. I use it in the middle of winter as a defiance. It made be cold and snowy all around, the sleet may be turning everything to slush and mud, but I am bright as these lemon slices. Cold outside, happy inside.
"Everlasting God" ended and I was ready for a different song, so I switched to Brooke Waggoner. Courtney and I missed her in concert with Denison Witmer back in September, when we went on one of my favorite dates that I've had with her. We had walked into the basement of a college classroom building to find a dark, old auditorium. The two college activity council girls taking tickets didn't even know who was playing, for how long, or when it would start. By the time we had run to get dinner, at a local restaurant on the water, Denison Witmer was already 2 or 3 songs into his set. Courtney and I had been the oldest people in the audience by far, and there were only 40-50 people at maximum. We sat in the back row, held hands and sung along with the songs that we had loved when the other concert goers weren't even out of the single digits in age. That was a night for feeling happy inside.
I had remembered Brooke Waggoner's name from the concert though, looked her up on iTunes and downloaded an album, "Heal for the Honey." It's great, I really enjoy it, but I'm just now getting to know the songs. I'm just starting to understand the words, feel their meanings, and be able to recite them. My favorite melody was on the song "Tender Meaning," so I cued that one up for Gideon and I to listen to.
"We nailed a bunch of pictures onto the wall
Wiped up all the kitchen countertops
Lit a lot of candles on the table outside
To show our happy guests that we were happy inside"
Gideon bounced back and forth in his chair, I danced with my smoothie in one hand, kicking my feet out towards him and then back behind me like I was "skanking" to the Supertones. My arms windmilled in the air and Gideon smiled a sticky peanut butter smile. I learned the words the first time through the song, then replayed it. I sang right to Gideon, leaning in for a kiss on the nose in between verses.
And I couldn't help but think of the Jewish way of blessing God. Here I am, wonderful son, beautiful morning, tasty pineapple orange banana smoothie, dancing and singing... what more do I want from a beautiful God? So I decided to say some Jewish-style blessings in my joy.
I know that neither pineapple, nor orange, nor banana comes from a vine... but in the Jewish tradition I joyfully lifted up: Blessed are You, LORD, our God, King of the universe, who creates the fruit of the vine. Then I added one of my own: Blessed are You, LORD, our God, who has given me a joyous family.
God is good, and because he is, there are a lot of mornings and evenings that I truly can say I am happy inside. I pulled Gideon's highchair across the tile floor, gave him a kiss on top of the head, and then pushed repeat.
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