Becoming Grateful Day 22: Sing About Gratitude

SING ABOUT GRATITUDE

I remember one particular Thanksgiving when I was young, couldn't have been more than ten, when I had learned a song in school. I came home and sang it for my parents. They must have been pretty impressed with my vocals because they made me sing it in front of all my relatives at Thanksgiving dinner that year. Luckily two of my siblings had to join in. Here's how it goes...

Oh gobble, gobble, gobble. 

Fat turkeys, fat turkeys. 

Oh gobble, gobble, gobble. 

Fat turkeys are we.

We're not made for Thanksgiving,

We're made just for living.

Oh gobble, gobble, gobble. 

Fat turkeys are we.

Not only did we have to sing it, but we had to do the actions. What actions go with this song you're asking? Picture this: put your hand to your neck a little under the chin, grab onto some skin, and shake it back and forth every time you sing "gobble, gobble." Just like a turkey. That's right, our parents made us act like turkeys. I'm glad YouTube wasn't invented back then, or we'd have ended up like this little guy did for all to see.

The truth is, I still sing that song each time Thanksgiving comes around, but just to myself. It's not really about gratitude, but I'll always remember that Thanksgiving dinner, standing on the step between my grandparents' kitchen and music room, shaking my neck like a turkey. Music has a way of doing that, helping us remember. Connect a song to something and you'll connect a memory or emotion to it. Try to find a song about gratitude or Thanksgiving and learn it. Involve your kids! Or go through your iTunes playlist and listen for songs with lyrics about being thankful. "Blessed" by Martina McBride is a good one to try. 

Prayer of Thanksgiving is a song I learned in 5th grade. I still remember rotating to the other classroom for music time and Mrs. Hogue trying to teach a bunch of uninterested kids this old hymn. I love it now. The LDS Children's song book also has a lot of great songs for kids to learn. Click on the songs below to hear the melodies. Chances are your kids will be teaching you a song or two.