In the village, I went with the family to a church service. When the other church goers filed out, we sat in the newspaper-wallpapered mud house talking with the pastor and a few others. I picked up a song book that the nephew had brought with him and was floored to see “If I were a butterfly, I’d thank you, Lord, for giving me wings” on the first page I opened the book to.
That line is the first in a children’s song I sang in the small Methodist church I grew up in. It’s one of those songs that as a child, I thought only we sang…and was surprised to find others at church camp who knew it. Then, when I moved to LA as an adult, I was even more surprised to find out my roommate who grew up in Detroit, Michigan also sang that song growing up. But, you know, we were all Methodists from the Midwest, so I guess now I can see that it’s not THAT surprising.
But seeing it in an English/Hindi/Assamese/Bodo songbook in a village in remote India — where I can safely say nobody is fluent in English — was definitely the biggest shock of all. This is missionaries at work, people.
haha, i saw this heading and thought, “i know that song….”
I figured you would as you’re the “my roommate who grew up in Detroit, Michigan.” Hehehe.