October 21 - “The Chant”

Ah, the joys of learning from your peers.  I remember them well.  Of course the things I used to learn from my peers were not usually (well, usually never) the kinds of things I would want my parents to know about.  Pretty much all of the array of curse words I knew as a kid came from my buddies on the street.  Hey, the dark and seamy world of sandlot baseball was a tough one back in the day.  And I can’t begin to list the things I learned when I reached junior high and high school.  Of course I had to appear cool, so I never let on that I was totally clueless. 

And here’s another thought.  Remember those chants you use to hear on the playground?  Some of them were good enough.  Others, not so much.  They could be about literally anything.  In fact, I found a few to share with you.  See which ones you remember. 

From the baseball field:

Up the river, down the lake,
The pitcher’s got a bellyache.
Got the shivers, got the shakes,
Pitcher’s belly’s full of snakes.
Thunder book, lightning flash,
Pitcher’s got an itchy rash.
I don’t think that one would be legal at a Little League game these days.

How about:

Step on a crack, And break your mother’s back. 
Or: Step over a ditch, Your father’s nose will itch.

Just getting rolling here: It’s raining it’s pouring, the old man is snoring

Went to bed and he bumped his head and he can’t get up this morning

A lot of those rhymes were strictly for girls.  Here’s one that guys could say … and really mean it:

Nobody Likes Me, Everybody hates me. Guess I'll go eat worms.
Fat ones, skinny ones, ooey, gooey icky ones, ones that squiggle and squirm.
First you cut the head off, Then you suck the juice out.  Then you throw the skin away
Nobody knows how girls can live on worms Three times a day

Cailyn’s kindergarten teacher is Mrs. Mack, and I ran across this one.  Appropriate:

Miss Mary Mack, Mack, Mack
All dressed in black, black, black
With silver buttons, buttons, buttons
All down her back, back, back
She asked her mother, mother, mother
For fifty cents, cents, cents
To see the elephant, elephant, elephant
Jump the fence, fence fence
They jumped so high, high, high
They touched the sky, sky, sky
And didn't come back, back, back
Till the fourth of July, July, July

I even found one that is a bit more … modern?

Brick wall, waterfall, girl you think you got it all,
but you don't, cause I do so BOOM with that attitude.
BANG BANG, choo choo train wind me up, I'll do my thang.
Reeses pieces, 7-Up, you mess with me I'll mess you up.

So all of that to say, we heard one of those culture-busting playground chants from Cailyn yesterday.  It also fits the festive season we are entering.

Trick or treat, smell my feet
Give me something good to eat
If you don’t, I don’t care
I’ll pull down your underwear

Now, I remember those first two lines, smell my feet and good to eat.  Lovely combination.  It’s those last two lines that were different.  Kind of comical, actually.  Chris did ask where she heard it, and the quick answer was, “At school.”  The follow up question was not so easy, though.  “Who told you?”  Another quick answer, “It’s private.”  Ouch.  There’s no way you’re getting that answer, Nana.  Highly privileged.  And honestly, if it was anything like the other chants that have been passed down for generations, she probably has no idea.  So crank up for Halloween, gang, and even more Trick or treat, smell my feet, Give me something good to eat …

Psalms 136:1-3 says, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.  His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of gods.  His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords. His love endures forever.”

Father, I guess you’re pretty good at that chanting thing, too.  Amen.