Give, Said the Little Stream

 

Two great concepts defined Beed when by the time he was five: the Pledge of Allegiance and the song, "Give, Said the Little Stream."

As I've tried to think of funny Beed stories, I had a struggle.  Like most first borns, Beed was born thirty-seven!  He lived in a house of only adults until his was over three.  He was a fun child, but a serious child.

One fun story is about his long eyelashes.  He'd sometimes have trouble opening his eyes when he was a baby because his eyelashes would get caught in the creases of his eyelids.  He looked like a new puppy or kitten just old enough to see.  He outgrew that as he got older, but he never outgrew his beautiful eyes (just ask his wife!)

 

One of the first things Beed memorized was the Pledge of Allegiance and could say it perfectly before he began kindergarten.  It came out like "and to the republich for which it stands," but that was okay.  The farther he got along with the pledge the faster he would say it until the last few words were a blur!

 

All of our children were taught patriotism at a young age and Beed was the first.  Our kids would stand for the National Anthem, even in a movie theater, and the boys learned very young to remove their hats and place them over their hearts when the flag went by during a parade.  I don't think parents are teaching their children about the founding and importance of this country much anymore and that makes me sad.

 

 

The song is one the children learned in Primary.  The first verse lyrics are:  Give said the little stream; give, oh, give; give, oh, give.  Give said the little stream as it hurried down the hill.  I'm small I know but wherever I go, the fields grows greener still.  Singing, singing all the day.  Give away, oh, give away.  Singing, singing all the day. Give, oh, give away. [1] 

 

The message of the song is that it is important to share with others as we go through this life.  Little streams who water the fields as they go are clear running and fresh.  Those that hoard their water become the Dead Sea.  Beed learned it well and to this day is one of the most unselfish and giving people I know. 

 

That is something else some parents today fail to teach their children.  Maybe that is why we have so many discontented people in the world.  They haven't learned that if you focus only on yourself you become brackish and stagnant of soul.  As C. S. Lewis said, in essence, you don't find joy when you try to horde it.  You must get busy looking outside of yourself to others and joy will sneak up and tap you on the shoulder.

 

[1] The little child singing the first verse even sounds like Beed!  "Hoe-wied down the hill." "Whew-evo I go."  I love remembering!  http://www.lds.org/churchmusic/detailmusicPlayer/index.html?searchlanguage=1&searchcollection=2&searchseqstart=236&searchsubseqstart

 

Text © 2012 Gebara Education

John Wayne poster  downloaded from Facebook.

Picture of stream from www.freebigpictures.com