Delores E. Topliff
I love discovering the history and origins behind most common
nursery rhymes that bring added details on the life and times of real people
and events. Children may singsong these easily memorized words and tunes on playgrounds which adults could noy openly say then for fear of punishment.
For example, some believe Rockabye Baby in the Treetops, dated to
1765, concerns the newborn son of King James II of England and Mary of Modena, Italy,
who many believed was not their son but a child brought in and presented as
theirs to insure a Catholic heir to the throne.
Goosey,
Goosey Gander, dates to 1784 and involves religious persecution in the days
when Catholic priests hid to say Latin prayers prohibited even in the privacy
of home. In the original version, the narrator discovers an old man “who
wouldn’t say his prayers. So I took him by his left leg. And threw him down the
stairs.”
Three
Blind Mice (1805) is thought to speak of “Bloody Mary” with the three mice representing
three Protestant bishops Hugh Latimer, Nicholas Radley, and The Archbishop of Canterbury,
Thomas Cranmer who conspired to overthrow her rule and were burned at the stake
for heresy. Their blindness describes
the religious beliefs banned in her kingdom.
There
are many more but lets return to modern times. The Bible instructs us to
pray for our leaders and trust God to promote or remove them, but we often make
comments about various leaders shown on national currencies, or the faces of presidents
that should or should not be carved on America’s Mt. Rushmore.
I
wonder what nursery rhymes will arise from our times. I would not want
to wear the shoes or bear the responsibilities of elected officials, but without being cruel or
criminal, is there a catchy phrase you’ve heard or thought of concerning a current
world leader or event? Also feel welcome to share an honoring phrase that fits
real people and times.
In
fact, I think I’ll spend the rest of today trying to coine up with one and share
it next time. I hope you’ll join me.
Some credit to The Dark Origins of 11
Classic Nursery Rhymes, Jennifer M. Wood, http://mentalfloss.com/article/55035/dark-origins-11-classic-nursery-rhymes
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