My Grandmother (my Dad’s Mom) was serious all the time - at least whenever I was around her. She was prim and proper - well dressed, had her hair done every week, and no fun. None of her grandchildren enjoyed spending time with her. But my Grandfather was a different story. He worked as hard as his wife but instead of a scowl, he wore a smile on his face - singing and whistling through his day. All of their grandchildren adored our Grandpa. Any music played in their home was generally a collection of old time hymns - except when my Grandmother left to run an errand and then our Grandpa would sneak in a record of Hank Williams (https://youtu.be/pyiGHFGCf2U).
Don’t get me wrong, on Sunday mornings I am ALWAYS in the mood for deeply meaningful hymns of worship and praise. Hymns like The Deep Deep Love of Jesus, How Great Thou Art, Worthy Is the Lamb, It is Well With My Soul, etc. There are countless hymns that I adore - that often run through my mind while I read my Bible throughout the week. However, there is a REASON I love How Great Thou Art and that reason is that I can still hear my Grandpa’s tenor voice belting out that hymn next to me in church and I loved my Grandpa because he lived a joyous life! I loved my Grandma too but she wasn’t a warm person and she wasn’t full of joy like my Grandpa was.
My favorite music is upbeat music. I have a very eclectic list of songs I enjoy from across multiple genres. My mood determines what music I choose to listen to and most often, the music I choose is upbeat. I have only 2 playlists on Spotify - one for upbeat music of all types and one for the rest - slower, more contemplative music.
More than anything else, I love to laugh. So music that makes me laugh is pretty high on my list. First on my list is the upbeat Gospel and Contemporary Christian music that moves my soul to a position of praise and worship that strengthens and energizes me. But a close second are the silly songs that make me laugh. The parodies of Weird Al Yankovic can be a great way to induce laughter - a favorite in our house is Word Crimes (https://youtu.be/8Gv0H-vPoDc). And the hilarious Christian song parodies of Tim Hawkins will have our family rolling with laughter!
My Mom is probably to blame for my love of silly songs. She and I have a lot in common in this regard. She likes classical music but mostly the upbeat music from the album “Hooked on Classics” that she listened to while doing aerobics. She played and sang so many hilarious songs to us as kids.
Songs my Mom exposed me to were songs like The Witch Doctor (https://youtu.be/cmjrTcYMqBM), Transfusion (https://youtu.be/HbhvZ2y1V80), The Crazy Banana (https://youtu.be/oq79Z-4AfCg) and Ape Call (https://youtu.be/ueMoGDqHchU) to name just a few!😂
In elementary school our music teacher taught us fun songs like Don Gato about a cat who gets a letter from a female cat and is so happy he falls off the roof and dies but comes back to life at the smell of fish. Another song was called Grandma’s Feather Bed about how it was so big that it could hold eight kids, four hound dogs and a piggie they stole from the shed. 😂 Our high school choir sang some fun songs like Jack der Sprat - a funny song with German sounding English words about Jack Sprat and his wife from the nursery rhyme. We also sang a song called “ The Sow Died in the Spring.”
A friend of mine in high school taught me a silly little song, one verse of which goes like this:
Magalina Pagalina Supersonna Ronna Ronna Chugga Lugga Lugga was her name.
She had two teeth in her mouth, one pointed North and the other pointed South
Oh Magalina Pagalina Supersonna Ronna Ronna Chugga Lugga Lugga was her name.
I, of course, have passed these songs and the love of silliness and laughter to my children. As a result, my children have exposed me to new songs to add to my tickle-your-funny bone list. More modern songs that make me laugh. Songs like I’m A Burrito (https://youtu.be/QzpXCbk9OWc) and The Fruit of the Spirit’s Not A Coconut (https://youtu.be/pB2WmMcBNks).
When I still was feeding my children before they could operate a spoon, there were times they didn’t want to eat something I was feeding them. So I sang this song to them:
M (with my mouth closed) M (sticking my tongue out) said the little green frog one day
M (with my mouth closed) M (sticking my tongue out) said the little green frog
M (with my mouth closed) M (sticking my tongue out) said the little green frog one day
‘Til they all went M (with my mouth closed) M (sticking my tongue out) Ah (my mouth wide open)
It’s funny how kids copy your mouth when you do funny things like that and I would be able to sneak a spoon full if food into their open mouths. 😂
When my kids were young I used to sing a song to them to help remind them to be patient when they were struggling to wait for something. Patience (https://youtu.be/iL1BRPEjMZA). I played the whole song for them and then would sing just the chorus if they were whining while standing in a long line or in some other patience-testing situation. It was remarkably effective - probably because of the embarrassment factor of having their Mom sing to them in public (my voice isn’t THAT bad!🤣) but after a few times all I had to say once the whining started was “Do I need to sing the Patience song?” Even today, as teenagers, my kids adjust their impatient attitudes when I threaten to sing that song!
My favorite Christmas song is I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas (https://youtu.be/33QcgQdjfSs). And from the first year it came out, Matthew West’s Gobble Gobble song has been a fun addition to our Thanksgiving celebrations (https://youtu.be/wqAjWUAlJ-0).
Having a creative youth pastor who teamed up with a singer and songwriter when I was a teen also contributed to my fondness for silly songs. I remember one song they made up about traveling all over the world to places like Owha, Tagoo and Siam. They had us singing the chorus which, when put all together makes the phrase “Oh what a goose I am!” And we used to sing fun songs with creative verses that I sang to my own children when they were young. Songs like I’ve Been Redeemed with verses like:
Oh, you can’t get to heaven (repeat)
On roller skates (repeat)
No you can’t get to heaven on roller skates
You’ll roll right past those pearly gates
I’ve been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb
etc.
We also sang songs like this one:
Give me gas for my Ford, keep me truckin’ for the Lord
Give me gas for my Ford I pray
Give me gas for my Ford, keep me truckin’ for the Lord
Keep me truckin’ til the break of day
Sing hosanna, sing hosanna sing hosanna to the King of Kings
This song also has multiple fun verses.
As you are aware, I have Multiple Sclerosis. It makes my disease and my weaknesses much more bearable if I can laugh at myself. I am increasingly dizzy which means I lose my balance at random - while I’m standing still. Crazy to think that I could fall just because I am standing still and suddenly lose my balance! WHAT? Now I find that hilarious! My Grandmother would not have found it funny and there are members of my family who cannot find the humor in my condition. But I have to ignore the negativity and drown it out with joy and laughter - it’s how I deal with a debilitating illness. The Lord didn’t allow MS into my life so I would mope around and feel sorry for myself. He expects me to USE it for His glory!
If I struggle for a word, I often just insert any old word that comes to mind to keep the conversation flowing. For example, the other day I needed to fill a muffin tin with batter but couldn’t think of either word so I just said that I needed to put the “stuff“ in the “thing.” And I laughed but my family knew what I was talking about, thankfully so no one was confused.😂
Laughter and singing is all over the Bible.
There are a LOT more verses about singing, joy and laughter. These are just a few. But they emphasize my point. The Christian life is supposed to be lived joyously! We are supposed to be broadcasting how wonderful it is to be saved by grace - to know our destination and draw people to us! We want people to be caught up in our joy! Attracted to the amazing promises of Jesus Christ! And we can’t effectively do this if our lives are lived in solemn, joyless seriousness.
A little silliness and joy goes a long way - don’t take yourself so seriously. God doesn’t. He likens us to dumb sheep - and we ARE! Sheep are silly and cute but they aren’t smart. Lean in to your role as a sheep - be innocent, secure in the knowledge you are being watched out for by the Shepherd - but be sure to follow the right voice!
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