"The Worst"

Adam frequently gives me a hard time about my use of the term "the worst." Granted, in hindsight, I do agree that I may sometimes exaggerate the phrase. Like, for example, when I'll exclaim that my paper cut is simply "The Worst!" Really? A paper cut? But, as the vinegar on the sandwich I'm eating soaks into my open cut, it does at that time seem to be 'the worst.'

You realize quickly however that 'the worst' is such a hard thing to pin point. I mean, there are always more options you can add to any situation that'd make it even more difficult or more painful... from getting a headache to breaking a bone to losing a loved one and so on.

All this said, I will stand by my coming statement that some children's songs are simply 'the worst.' I'm not talking about the tune (though that is sometimes hideous) or the overly breathy kids voices that commonly sing them.... I'm talking about the origin of them.

Take Anabelle's Wee Sing album for a moment. Several of those songs have made Adam & I ponder, "Where did this song come from? And what in the world are they singing about?" To get more specific, we recently looked into the kids' song "Jimmy Crack Corn." Here's what we found on it:

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"Jimmy Crack Corn" is thought to be a blackface minstrel song, first performed in the United States in the 1840s that remains a popular children's song today.

Over the years, many variants of text have appeared, but the basic narrative remains intact.

On the surface, the song is a black slave's lament over his master's death. The song, however, has a subtext of rejoicing over that death, and possibly having caused it by deliberate negligence.

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Really? 9 year old kids sing this song joyfully and haphazardly? Another disturbing one is "Ring around the Rosie" that is said to be about life during the Black Plague (ie, ashes, ashes, we all fall down = the numerous deaths of the people during that time). Though, in its defense, snopes.com says that this link isn't legit. I had already heard about it though, so the damage has been done to the song =)

So, what's the point? I'm not sure we totally have one, nor are we banning these songs from our music library or anything. I just think it's a good reminder every once in awhile to remember to think about what we're exposing our kids to. There are all sorts of innocent looking things - much more serious than an old song - that creep into our lives and perhaps aren't the best for us or our children to be exposed to. Because, afterall, being a negligent parent really is 'the worst.' =)