After yet another late night on daddy-watch, I've become acutely aware that I don't know the words to any soft songs or lullabyes. Little Z will wail away and then at times turn his head slightly to say "ok, whaddya got?" and usually what comes to mind is whatever the last tv commercial jingle was on. My latest go-to song as well has been the theme from Cheers.
I likely know the first verse of a few songs... like this 'rockabye baby' little diddy. So, I just google'd it and apparently there's just 4 lines, which can't be too hard. However, have you ever actually read or listened to the words?? You're humming right along, wind blowing, cradle rocking etc etc... and then suddenly something called a 'bough' is breaking and cradles are falling everywhere! "Down will come baby, cradle and all"???? What the hell?? This is a soothing song for a child? I could imagine, when Zachary understands words, that if I said that, he'd look at me in extreme alarm and then be afraid to sleep in his crib.
I have a vague memory from my own childhood of some nursery rhyme which seemed benign at the time but now frightens the living piss out of me. The 'now I lay me down to sleep...' one. Again, another of these 4-line jobs which starts out nice "I pray the lord to my soul to keep" and then jumps right to "If I should die before I wake..." Isn't that nice and comforting? Yup, I definitely want to get right to sleep now!
All of this leaves me, so far, with very little fodder to entertain my little guy with without scaring the bejeesus out of him or me. He's not quite interactive yet, makes eye contact more now but that's about it so actual words aren't a big issue for understanding yet. I've made up lyrics to a few things now, mostly turns on the phrase "I don't know the words but please be quiet".
So for now... you wanna go where people know, people are all the same, you wanna go where everybody knows your name...
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