Blessed Be

Each of my kids has their "own" lullaby. I hadn't planned it out that way initially, it just sort of happened, first with Kendall. When she was just a tiny little baby, I would rock her and sing to her...and eventually it became clear that her favorite lullaby was Edelweiss. As she got older, she would request that I sing it to her over and over, and most especially if she were sick. She loves the line, "Blossom of snow, may you bloom and grow...bloom and grow forever..." because I always tell her that she's our blossom of snow, being born in the end of January and all. And now, because parenthood has made me an emotional trainwreck, I can't sing it to her without tears. Thank goodness the lights are always off when I'm singing!

Now when Noah was born, I had no idea what "his" lullaby would be. See, it's not like I ever have a preconceived notion about these things, they just seem to happen. I decided not to stress about it and figured it would present itself when the time was right. (Besides, it's not like I could really sing to Noah anyway, since he was too busy crying at bedtime and not wanting to sleep. He couldn't have even HEARD me sing, believe me! More on that story later, for those of you who are interested.) So anyway, present itself it did. Kendall and I had gone to the library to pick up some books and she asked if we could get some kid music...she already had one picked out. It was a Raffi CD, and though I had heard of Raffi, we didn't have any of his CDs. So I said sure, and we were on our way. When we got home, I started making dinner, and popped the CD into my laptop so we could listen as we cooked...and lo and behold, the lullaby presented itself! Blessed Be. Kendall was stirring something (I can't remember what), and she just looked at me and said, "Mama, that would be the perfect lullaby for Noah!! He's our newborn baby! Can we sing it to him?" Well, of course, I fell in love with the song immediately. And if you've ever heard it, you can understand why. And if you haven't, Google it and give it a listen...especially if you're a parent, or are soon to be a parent, or even want to be a parent. It's beautiful. And even better, once Noah got over all the crying, he loved it too. In fact, that's what leads me to tonight's post:

Tonight, as I was putting Noah to bed, he said, "Lay down, Mama. Lay down." And I replied, "Ok buddy, but just for a few minutes. Mama needs to go read with Kendall, ok?" So I lay down next to him and he puts his chubby little hand on my cheek and says, "Sing, Mama. Pwease sing." I asked him what he wanted me to sing, and he said one word..."Wuwwabye".
So, I started singing Blessed Be, and he got instantly quiet. And of course, the tears are running down my cheeks (what the heck is my problem, anyway? It's just a song, for goodness sake...), and when I finish, I hear this sleepy little voice say, "Fank you Mama. So pwetty. I wuff you Mama." And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why the tears are still finding their way down my cheeks.

Blessed Be
Words and Music by Raffi
C 1999 Homeland Publishing

Baby dear, blessed be your shining light.
Baby dear, blessed be your morning smile.
Baby dear, blessed be your gleaming eyes.
Blessed be the precious child
Our beloved baby dear.

Baby dear, we will love with all our might.
Baby dear, we will comfort you at night.
Baby dear, with all the love we’ve got.
We’ll be there for you
Oh blessed be our newborn babe.

So dream on, sweet dreams tonight
And we’ll dream too a future clean and bright.
Dream on, soon you’ll be standing strong and free
Oh blessed be our newborn babe.

Baby dear, blessed be your shining light
Baby dear, blessed be your morning smile
Baby dear, with all we’ve got to give.
We’ll be there for you
Oh blessed be our newborn babe,
Blessed be the hopes and dreams of our baby.