The old songs part of our mind

Who knows when the last time was when I thought of this old song from my childhood? Then it hit me; for reasons I can’t begin to understand. I was sipping on my morning cup of “joe” and suddenly the words of this song from my childhood began to flow from the memory potion of my mind to the extent that I got a bit emotional for a couple of minutes.

Suddenly I was thinking of listening to this old classic on the Lawrence Welk Show on a cold winter night while the firewood in our stove crackled as my mother popped popcorn and made hot chocolate so we could enjoy an evening of relaxation watching our box Zenith TV.

Before the evening was over, we might hear the likes of Perry Como singing, “Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket, save it for a rainy day,” or close his program by singing something sacred as, “Bless this house, O Lord we pray, make it safe by night and day.”

Then there was the Tennessee Ernie Ford Show with its ever-popular, “Sixteen Tons.”

All day now, songs from that era of my mind have been celebrating a concert with such songs as, “How much is that doggy in the window,” “Micah rowed the boat ashore,” and “Hot diggidy, dog diggidy, boom what you do to me.”

Of course, there were the special Christmas songs of the era, some of which I played on a 78 RPM record that played on a record player that had to be cranked up in order to perform.

Then there were the special Christmas songs of the era, “All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth,” “I saw momma kissing Santa Claus,” and “Oh Christmas Tree.”

The infinite portion of the “renewed mind” that triggered old song memories becomes more keen with the recollection of each of those songs of the 1950’s.

Deep on this memory journey, a song comes back that used to make me cry when I was a young boy. It was written by the country/folk writer, Stuart Hamblin, based on a lonely journey through a valley in California.

In the midst of his journey, he came across an old house that seemed still and empty until he heard the lonely whining of a dog. Presently, a thin pup came out of the house and beckoned Hamblin to the old rickety shelter.

Hamblin followed the wagging tail of the old pup, knowing that he was being led to someone somewhere. Inside a parlor, suddenly he spotted the lifeless body of an old prospector whose lifeless body lie still on a daybed. Beside him was a blanket where the dog had apparently guarded the body of his master until Hamblin arrived.

In the distance of his mind, Hamblin imagined a house once filled with the sounds of children, home and family warmth. Overwhelmed by the empty home and dead owner, but a faithful dog, Hamblin sat down and wrote the following words to the song, “This Old House.”

“This ole house once knew his children This ole house once new his wife This ole house was home and comfort As they fought the storms of life This ole house once rang with laughter This ole house heard many shouts Now he trembles in the darkness When the lightning walks about.”