When I was a child I would make a train with three or four boxes turned upside down on the floor. I would sit in one box and pretend to be a passenger, the conductor or the man in the caboose. My mother was a teacher and my grandmother cared for me until I went to school. Each day she would do her chores while I played nearby. She taught me to sing this rhyme.
Here we go 'round the mulberry bush,
The mulberry bush,
The mulberry bush.
Here we go 'round the mulberry bush,
So early in the morning.
These are the chores we'll do this week,
Do this week,
Do this week.
These are the chores we'll do this week,
So early every morning.
This is the way we wash our clothes,
Wash our clothes,
Wash our clothes.
This is the way we wash our clothes,
So early Monday morning.
This is the way we iron our clothes,
Iron our clothes,
Iron our clothes.
This is the way we iron our clothes,
So early Tuesday morning.
This is the way we scrub the floor,
Scrub the floor,
Scrub the floor.
This is the way we scrub the floor,
So early Wednesday morning.
This is the way we mend our clothes,
Mend our clothes,
Mend our clothes.
This is the way we mend our clothes,
So early Thursday morning.
This is the way we sweep the floor,
Sweep the floor,
Sweep the floor.
This is the way we sweep the floor,
So early Friday morning.
This is the way we bake our bread,
Bake our bread,
Bake our bread.
This is the way we bake our bread,
So early Saturday morning.
This is the way we get dressed up,
Get dressed up,
Get dressed up.
This is the way we get dressed up,
So early Sunday morning.
Here we go 'round the mulberry bush,
The mulberry bush,
The mulberry bush.
Here we go 'round the mulberry bush,
So early in the morning.
Now that I think about it, grandmother actually washed clothes on Monday and ironed on Tuesday. I think there were several lessons in that rhyme that I missed. That's really what this blog is about--the lessons I might have missed, many lessons I've learned and would like to share and many things I'm still learning every day about life, family, home and community that might be interesting to my readers and fellow bloggers.
My whole life I've been trying to get organized. The truth is, I don't wash clothes on Monday unless I've run out of underwear. And, I never, ever iron if I can help it. I prefer placing clothes back in the dryer with a wet washcloth, running it until the wrinkles are less noticeable. Or, sometimes I spray them with a wrinkle remover spray. The point I think grandmother was trying to make was that routines are important when trying to get everything done. Whether you are an adult trying to get to work or a child trying to catch the school bus, a morning routine is probably the key to getting there on time. When it's routine, I don't have to think about what I need to do and the kids automatically know what's expected of them. Hmmm glad that lesson finally sunk in. My grandmother would be proud. (She's been gone since 1965.) I hope you will join me on some of my adventures around the mulberry bush and share some of your adventures too.
