OUR PARADE OF JOYFUL HYMN-SINGERS

Tears well up and there's a catch in the throat at the first sound of the old and favorite hymn. "Oh Lord, my God. When I in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds they hands have made..."

That hymn, "How Great Thou Art," instantly evokes memories of Jim's grandfather who loved to sing it. The family always sat in the same place under the balcony of the church in Westerville, Ohio. With his deep bass voice, Grandfather prompted his daughters, wife and sometimes even nervous grandchildren to join in a four-part family choir whose lusty, harmonious rendition was rich and unforgettable.

Our family comes from a long line of joyful hymn singers and palm branch wavers. We rejoice in the memory of their voices. We especially rejoice that we have been able to visit many of the places where our ancestors worshipped.

You won't find any of the churches in world atlases. The stone church high in the Pyrenees Mountains of Spain where Haydee's father played as a child and where his ancestors are buried served a community of 50 families — and 5,000 sheep! We've visited the small church in the village of La Granja de la Cisterna in Valencia where Haydee's mother was born and baptized. And Jim has visited the Lutheran Church in Germany where his grandfather's family worshipped.

These "Roots" visits add a rich dimension to our family history. One of the "church stories" that has traveled through the generations is of a great aunt, Mary Gibson, who as a child in the late 1800s had added a touch of red to her cheeks by dabbing them with strawberry jam. She was one of six children who dutifully attended church in Burr Oak, Indiana, and on this day, she was the pianist accompanying the choir. All looked wonderful until the sermon, when her sweetness was discovered by a swarm of yellow jackets (there was no air conditioning nor any screens on the windows). No surprise, that forced an abrupt ending to church music.

Pondering the role their churches and their religion played in their day-to-lives always comes into sharper focus when we hear familiar songs and at this time of the year. On three continents, our ancestors faced many different challenges and pursued very different endeavors. But on Sundays, they stopped to worship their God.

And on Palm Sunday, our family for generations has gathered to join the throng that cheerfully greeted Jesus 2,000 years ago. In their tiny churches and in their own way, our families celebrated, sang and prepared for the trauma and triumph of the Holy Week to come.

Today we give thanks for them, for the examples they set and for the paths they followed. We give thanks for family memories, for our place in the parade of palm wavers and for the times when we, too, raise our voices in "awesome wonder."

— Haydee and Jim Toedtman

Courtesy of The Church of the Good Shepherd United Methodist