Third week Advent

This week's theme was Love, which I *think* is slightly out of order with most of Christianity (I thought this week was supposed to be Joy).

But anyway.During the children's time, the minister had us sing "Jesus Loves Me" (apparently some of the kids did not know it? Yikes).

And, I don't know. I don't know if it's just 2019, or if I'm getting more sentimental with age, but I had a hard time not just putting my head down on the edge of the pew-back in front of me and crying. I don't know why I started to tear up. It happens more now and more surprisingly.

I learned this song....oh, years and years ago. I don't even remember when or where. I do remember a Vacation Bible School one summer where they taught us a sign-language version (no idea if it was actually ASL or something made up....)

(Oh my gosh, it actually WAS ASL - that video shows the version I remember. I didn't remember ALL of it, but I remember "nodding" your fist for the "yes," and the idea of Jesus being the "pierced hands" (that's how they explained the sign to us) and that the Bible is the "Jesus Book" (sign for Jesus, sign for book).

(Now I wonder what the ASL for the Old Testament or the Torah is, "Jesus-book" would definitely not work for that)

We only did the first verse though. I suppose they thought if six year olds could learn that much, they were doing well.

But anyway. It did take me back, ages and ages ago (more than 40 years now!) to sitting in the basement of the old church in the town where I grew up - it was the Baptist church ("American" Baptist, sometimes called "Northern" Baptist - typically a more theologically-liberal denomination than the better-known Southern Baptist, though it was that church that had the people who talked a lot about the Rapture and that always worried me as a kid because I was afraid I wouldn't be good enough when it happened*)

(*Yes, I have always been like this, I guess)

So part of it may have been that striking childhood memory. Part of it may have been....I don't know. It just caught me funny, things do that now.

The meatballs are in the slow cooker and I need to eat something, and then finish winding off yarn and get my clothes in my suitcase...